SENSE 
DIDACTICS 



HENRY SABIN 




Class _L_ 

Book 

CopyrightN^. 



COPYRIGHT DEPOSIT. 



COMMON SENSE 
DIDACTICS 

FOR COMMON SCHOOL TEACHERS 



By 
HENRY SABIN, LL.D. 

Superintendent of Public Instructioji for the State of Iowa i888-g2 

and i8q^-q8. C/iainnan of Cotnmittee of Twelve 

on Rziral Schools, N'. E. A. iSqs 




RAND, McNALLY & COMPANY 

Chic a (TO Ne7v York London 



IBiozs 



ftlBaARY of OONGHSSS 
Twg Copies rtetftve* 

JUL 13 iy05 

/ 2. / S'S'3 
GOPr ti. 



;^y 



y 



Copyright, 1905, by Henry Sabin 



Chicago 



THE PREFACE 

PURPOSES. — This book is addressed to that large 
body of teachers who are at work in the common 
schools of the land. It is designed to be helpful to 
those who have had little or no professional training 
and whose outfit consists mainly in their native good 
sense, and in a fair knowledge of the common 
branches. Whatever there may be of value in the 
volume is drawn very largely from an experience of 
over fifty years in school work. While acting as super- 
visor of schools, and at institutes and educational meet- 
ings, it has been my custom to note down those points 
of practical importance in which the body of teachers 
seemed to need instruction. From these notes I have 
prepared a volume for those who are disposed to inves- 
tigate school affairs from a common sense standpoint. 
Much genuine pleasure has been derived from the writ- 
ing of this volume, and it is sent forth in the hope that 
it may prove an aid and encouragement to those 
who desire to enter more fully into the true spirit of 
teaching, without which all knowledge is formal and 
valueless so far as the school is concerned. There are 
countless numbers of teachers who regard only the 
subject matter contained in the books, and neglect "to 
teach the child," which is a far more worthy object. 

Not long since the statement was made by a promi- 
nent superintendent, and greeted with applause, that 
he measured the worth of a teacher by the number of 
pupils in her room who could pass a successful exam- 

3 



^ Preface 

ination for promotion. This book has been written, 
not only to combat, as far as possible, such ideas as 
this, but to inculcate and enforce the opposite, which 
Edward Thring formulates in these words: "Education 
means training for life. Lives, not lessons, are dealt 
with; with its corollary, that no system which battens 
on books is true." 

I have no desire to appear as a critic. The oft- 
repeated story of incompetent teachers and wretched 
schools, dinned into the ears of young teachers, has a 
most disheartening effect. It kills their ambition, 
dwarfs their enthusiasm, and sends them to their 
schools with the feeling that in nine cases out of ten 
failure is inevitable. On the contrary, I would take 
down the shutters, and throw open the schoolroom 
doors, that God's pure air, the warm sunshine, the 
songs of birds, and the smell of flowers may come in 
and fill every crevice and corner of the room, so that 
the humblest teacher may see and feel what a noble. 
Godlike thing it is to strive honestly and conscien- 
tiously to do one's duty. 

Arrangement of Subjects. — It is proper here to call 
attention to the arrangement chosen for the subject- 
matter in the different chapters. This volume is 
designed as a counselor, which teachers can keep on 
their desks, and to which they can refer at odd 
moments, as they have time or as occasion suggests. 
While there is a common vein of thought and purpose 
easily traced, running through the entire book, each 
chapter has a character of its own; it stands out by 
itself, and is intended to meet an individual purpose. 
Thus, any teacher can select the chapter which seems 
to meet personal or present necessities, and defer read- 
ing the others until a more opportune time. 



Preface 5 

Arrangement of Chapters.— In arranging the chap- 
ters the reader will find that the first four have refer- 
ence to the nature of teaching and the preparation of 
the teacher. This is followed by two chapters having 
special reference to the child and things which will be 
most useful to children. Moral instruction, as of 
greatest importance, follows next, with its adjunct, 
habits. School government naturally follows this. 
The health of the school and the cultivation of taste 
are next. Then the recitation follows, not because it 
is of minor importance, but because other things which 
have been mentioned are necessary in order that the 
recitation may be of most use. Oral instruction, as 
closely allied, follows recitation. The other subjects, 
memory, imagination, and so on, come in their natural 
order. Special attention, however, is called to the last 

chapter, regarding books and their uses. 

Henry Sabin. 

Des Moines^ Iowa, June, iQOj. 



THE TABLE OF CONTENTS 



CHAPTER PAGE 

Preface 3 

Suggestions to the Reade?' . . . . = 7 

/. The Nature and Character of Teaching ... 9 

//, The Teacher 25 

///. Preparation for Teaching 39 

IV. Things Essential to the Teacher 57 

V. The Child 77 

VI. Knowledge Most Useful to the Children ... 97 

VII. Morals 124 

VIII. Habits , . 145 

IX. School Government 165 

X. The Hygiene of the School 185 

XL The Cultivation of Taste 208 

XII. The Recitation 224 

XIII. Oral Instruction 245 

XIV. Memory 259 

XV. Imagination, Attention, Interest 274 

XVI. The Old vs. the New 289 

XVII Books and Their Uses 309 

Itidex of Titles ajtd Subdivisio7ts Treated of in 

Each Chapter .....0.0.... 333 

Index of Authors Qiioted 338 

Index of Subjects . , ......... 340 



SUGGESTIONS TO THE READER 

I • 

READ this book with pencil in hand. If you find 
anything which strikes you as wrong, or in 
which you think the author is mistaken, read the para- 
graph or page the second time more carefully than the 
first, and give the subject most earnest thought. 
Debate the matter with yourself, and draw your con- 
clusions from your own experience. Above all things 
cultivate the power of independent thought. 

II 

PAY attention to the questions at the end of each 
chapter. Some of them will enable you to exam- 
ine yourself as to the way in which you have read the 
text. Others are intended as suggestions and it will 
require some thought, and perhaps some research, to 
answer them in a manner satisfactory to yourself. 

Ill 

THE quotations at the close of each subject will be 
found very helpful if rightly read. They have 
been carefully selected from the highest educational 
authorities. From them the reader who has not ready 
access to a pedagogical library may learn something 
of the thought and style of men and women who have 
made themselves illustrious as writers and thinkers in 
their chosen fields. 

IV 

THE reader will notice that occasionally reference 
is made in the text to a preceding page. By 
turning back it will be found that the same subject is 
there treated from a somewhat different standpoint. 

7 



COMMON SENSE DIDACTICS 

CHAPTER I 

THE NATURE AND CHARACTER OF 
TEACHING 

The Open Door 

None but true ladies and gentlemen should be employed as 
teachers. 

—John A. Vincent. 

What a man purposes to do, that he should learn before the 
doing is attempted. 

—Socrates. 

Of the two I prefer activity of mind and interest in the work 
rather than high scholarship. 

— Thomas Arnold. 

Teaching is telling; and he who can so tell the common things 
of life as to excite the child's curiosity and interest, and arouse 
him to self-activity of mind is an expert teacher. 

—Selected. 

IF WE inquire what is the secret of success in teach- 
ing, we shall find that it lies almost wholly in the 
spirit of the teacher. Knowledge of subject matter, 
skill in the use of methods, an acquaint- . 

ance with the latest phases of educational ^' 

thought, although very desirable, are not the only essen- 
tial things. It is true that they are sometimes so 
regarded and are so emphasized by those who aspire to 
be teachers of teachers. But "teaching is telling." One 
man will tell a story, or preach a sermon, and nobody 
who hears will grasp his points or understand his con- 
clusions; another will tell the same story, or preach a 
sermon from the same text, so that his listeners will 



10 Common Sense Didactics 

eagerly take in every word and carry lasting impres- 
sions away with them. The reason is that the one tells 
his story as though he had no part in it; the other as 
though he himself were the hero: the one preaches his 
sermon as a matter of duty and not of heart; the other 
as though he himself were responsible for the salvation 
of every soul in the congregation. 

Between those who teach with the heart and the 
spirit, and those who teach as a matter of duty only, 
there is all the difference that there is between the 
quick and the dead. "It is the letter which killeth; it 
is the spirit which maketh alive." A certain teacher 
was once criticized as being "educated to death." He 
knew enough, and more than enough, but failed as a 
teacher in the deadness of his instructions, in his 
inability to put himself in close contact with his class, 
and in his failure to arouse interest or awaken enthu- 
siasm. 

It is very desirable that they who aspire to be teach- 
ers in our schools should be well grounded in those 
y-j... definitions and principles which are at the 

Hon of foundation of successful work in the school- 

ternis. room. The blind should not be allowed to 

lead the blind in matters of such great consequence as 
the education of the child. 

Observe, in the first place, the clear distinction 
between teaching and learning. I may be able to 
Teaching- ^^^^^ another something which he desires to 
vs. learn- know, but the act of learning is his own 
^^^^' individual action which no other person can 

appropriate Here is involved the true relation of the 
teacher to the pupil The teacher cannot create, but 
he can awaken and stimulate the self-activities of the 
child's mind. What the child does for himself to-day 



The Nature and Character of Teaching 



II 



gives him power to do more for himself to-morrow. 
Let us study this art of teaching for a moment. 

True teaching is a double process, involving at once 
the mind of the teacher and the mind of the taught. 
Anything less than this is not teaching. ^^^^^^^^^^ 
There must be an active cooperation be- 
tween the will of the master and that of the disciple. 
This cooperation must be voluntary, not forced; it can 
be induced only where there is absolute freedom on the 
part of all concerned in the operation. The teacher must 
be free to teach in accordance with his own ideals, 
and the pupil must be in that receptive state which is 
characterized by the absence of coercion or restraint. 

I do not disregard the place of authority in the 
schoolroom, but the nearer the exercise of teaching 
approaches a high standard of excellence the less need 
is there for any compulsion on the part of the teacher. 
It is only when this freedom prevails that teaching 
becomes a noble profession. Otherwise it is a trade, 
and a sorry one at that. Real teaching is not so much 
an informing as an awakening process. It is charac- 
terized by life and growth on the part of both the 
instructor and the school. Only that which is strong 
on the spiritual side can be made effective for the 
highest good of the pupil. 

Ruskin says: "That which is born of evil begets 
evil; that which is born of valor and honor begets 
valor and honor." Mechanical teaching, ^ ^^^^^.^^^ 
the mere listening to recitations, the rigid ^f^^^^H^^^ 
adherence to rules and formulas, so preva- 
lent in the schools, cannot produce or maintain life. 
Teaching which is saturated with life-giving energy 
reproduces its own spirit in the learner, and multiplies 
itself in many hearts. 



12 Com 771 Oil Se7ise Didactics 

David P. Page was not renowned for his learning; 
he had no diploma and no degree. Yet his book, The 
Theory a7id Practice of TeacJmig, has reached the hearts 
of more teachers than any other book ever written 
from an educational standpoint. Thomas Arnold was 
not superior to many others as a classroom instructor. 
It was not until after his death that his pupils discov- 
ered how indissoluble were the bands which bound 
them to him through the personal influence that he 
exerted over them. Mary Lyon, the founder of the 
school at Mt. Holyoke, is another example. 

There have been hundreds of such, unknown to 
fame, who have swayed the hearts of pupils and par- 
ents as the heads of ripened grain bend to the passing 
breeze. Recall the teachers who have most influenced 
your life, whose memory remains as a coal of living fire 
in your heart, and you will find that they were men 
and women whose soul enwrapped your soul, and filled 
you with a burning desire to know all things. 

A teacher had taught many years Hundreds of 
boys and girls had passed under his care. One of 
them, who had been a wayward boy, was heard to 
remark, "Something that teacher said to me once, 
opened my eyes to the possibilities of my life, and 
changed my future career in the world." And lo! the 
teacher, his face toward the setting sun, went on his 
way with a glad heart, for even while in the flesh, he 
had received a rich recompense for all his labors. 

Baldwin says: "Teaching is the art of promoting 

human growth." To be more specific, it is the art of 

promoting mental, moral, and physical 

defiiltion growth. Under its influence the child 

advances from one stage to another in a 

regular, systematic order. It is a constant, unvarying 



TJic Nature and CJiaractcr of Teacliing ij 

influence ministering to the wants of the child, as the 
sun and rain minister to the growth of the plant. 

The nature of teaching is such that it must be based 
upon mutual confidence. If the teacher is not con- 
scious of his own powers, he hesitates, and, through his 
timidity and his half-hearted zeal, fails to inspire his 
class to do the best work possible. On the other hand, 
when the pupils discover that the instructor is incom- 
petent, or is dull, lifeless, and half-hearted in his work, 
they first lose confidence and then interest, and the 
time allotted to the class recitation is wasted. 

Compayre says that a teacher must understand how 

to make what he knows an instrument of intellectual 

culture. Even the prattling child has his 

ideal. The truest teachins^ known is that ^^'^poftcmce 
... ... 1 • , ^f laeals 

which searches this out and upon it endeavors 

to build the child's future. 

There can be no true teaching then, where there is 
no ideal in the mind of the teacher. This ideal, which 
comes to the teacher as the result of study and experi- 
ence, must be clear, well-defined, and sufficiently strong 
to give tone to every exercise of the school. 

Dr. James, in his Talks to Teachers, says: "In teach- 
ing you must work your pupil into such a state of 
interest in what you are going to teach him 
that every other object of attention is ban- Q^^otation 
ished from his mind; then reveal it to him James. 
so impressively that he will remember the 
occasion to his dying day; and finally fill him with a 
devouring curiosity to know what are the next steps in 
connection with the subject." 

This is the culmination of true teaching: that it 
reaches the heart, influences the motives, controls the 
impulses, and promotes the growth of manliness in 



H 



Common Sense Didactics 



the youth. Teaching in its highest and best sense is 
characterized by a personality which takes fast hold of 
the child and creates a oneness of soul and heart 
between teacher and taught, so that either becomes a 
means of strength and help to the other. 

The reason why so many teachers fail in their work 
is because of the absence of the teaching spirit. Many 
of them do not even comprehend that there is such a 
thing in existence. They hear lessons, they enforce 
order, but their teaching is steeped in the very dregs 
of deadness. 

Somebody has said that Mark Hopkins at one end of 
a log and Garfield at the other, would constitute a 
university. That is not correct. So long as the log 
separated them there could be no teaching in any high 
sense. That would be possible only with Hopkins and 
Garfield sitting side by side, heart to heart, thought 
answering thought; the teacher quickening the pupil, 
and the pupil, by his eagerness to learn and know the 
truth, stimulating the teacher to yet greater effort. 
Wherever there is present a teacher with a desire to 
communicate and a power to awaken and stimulate, 
and a pupil not only willing but eager to learn, — these 
two constitute a school. 

I hold that the growth of the teacher is one of the dis- 
tinctive characteristics of real teaching. Thring says: 
"Like all other high arts, life must have free 
Growth of pi^y Qj. j-hei-e can be no true teaching." 
Living with the pupil; entering into his 
thoughts, his motives, his purposes; controlling and 
directing all his energies toward one end, and that 
end growth, — this is teaching. 

Do not go to sleep over your task; put soul and 
brains into it. Individualize your work. At every 



Tlie Nature and Character of TeacJiing 75 

point bring the school into contact with the world. 
Fetch the pebble from the shore; pluck the leaf from 
the tree, the rose from the stem; gather bud and flower 
and fruit; go out into the highways and the hedges, 
into the streets and the marts of trade, in order that 
you may stimulate the pupils under your care to 
develop into live men and women. "Light up the 
magic lantern of common sense and common things," 
and thus illumine your work. 

Huxley says: "It rests entirely upon the intellect- 
ual clearness and the moral worth of the individual 
whether the political experiment which we 
are tr3Mng in this country will succeed. Huxley's 
While education cannot give intellectual 
clearness or moral worth, it may cherish them and 
bring them to the front," To cherish and bring to 
the front intellectual clearness that the pupil may 
think exactly, and moral worth that he may act rightly, 
these are the ends to be earnestly sought by you in 
your work. 

Knowledge is not always a means of discipline. A 

man with a comparatively small amount of knowledge 

may have a mind trained to think, judge, 

remember, and reason. A man with a largfe Knowledge 

' , , , . , .. . ..^ and disci- 

amount or knowledge, but without discipline pline. 

to put what he knows into practice, has been 
compared to a would-be carpenter with a basket full 
of sharp tools which he has not the skill to use. Con- 
sequently, while the possession of knowledge is desir- 
able, it does not always insure a good teacher. 

Knowledge alone is not power. Only when it is 
applied to some useful purpose does it become of any 
real value to the individual or the public at large It 
is a part of the teacher's work so to impart knowledge 



i() Co mm 71 Se7ise Didactics 

that the pupil may assimilate it and thus gain strength 
and power through its nutriment. Knowledge is gen- 
erally supposed to be an accumulation of 
not'powei' facts. But the man who remembers the 
most dates in his.tory is not of necessity a 
superior historian; the man who has at his command 
all the rules and formulas in arithmetic or mathematics 
is not always a good mathematician. To accumulate 
information is one of the ends to be kept before the 
pupil. Every teacher should remember this, but at the 
same time he should not neglect the higher end which 
is growth, to which all knowledge should be made to 
minister. 

Discipline is the source of power. A man with a 
well-disciplined mind is one who can make the best- 
possible use of the knowledge he possesses. 
Useofdis- -pj^^ body is disciplined when, through care- 
ful exercising, each organ is able to perform 
its functions without weariness. One object of the 
school is to discipline as highly as possible both mind 
and body. 

A noted man wrote thus of himself: "I do not make 
any pretense of great knowledge. What I know I 
have made my own by thought and study. I know it, 
as it were, by heart. I feel dissatisfied if at the end of 
the week I have not added some increment, however 
small, to the sum of my knowledge." Yet another 
writes: "I have striven all my life to make my knowl- 
edge of some service to others with whom I have come 
in contact. If I have done any good in the world, it 
is because of this effort to make my knowledge 
serviceable. Selfishness has seemed to me abhorrent 
to my nature, and so I have endeavored to school 
myself to the notion that through the possession of 



The Nature and Character of Teachiiig ij 

knowledge I may make the world better for my living 
in it." Knowledge and discipline combined make a 
man a complete master of himself. 

Education is systematic development. It cannot 
do everything, nor can it supply that which is missing. 
In other words, education cannot create; it jnstruc- 
can only unfold or draw out. While it may tioti and 
be true that the mind of the child differs education. 
from that of the adult only in the power or strength 
which comes with maturity, it is equally true that the 
mind of one child is essentially different in its facul- 
ties, and in its power to grasp, from the mind of his 
seatmate. Hence the skillful teacher discriminates in 
what may be wisely required of children during the 
period of school education. It is the province of 
instruction to furnish material; of educatio?i to work the 
material up, so that it may minister to growth. The 
mind gains strength by assimilating the knowledge fur- 
nished through instruction. 

It is not my intention to attempt an original defini- 
tion of education or instruction. At the end of this 
chapter are a few' definitions sufilicient to convey a 
clear idea of what is included in each term I am 
anxious, however, to impress upon the reader the 
thought that neither education nor instruction is 
derived entirely from books. 

It used to be said that the child is sent to school to 
be educated. He may just as well be sent to the 
shoemaker's bench or the blacksmith's shop 
for that purpose. Life is the great educator, ffj^^^J^ 
and the incidents of life furnish the material 
for instruction, so that whether the child becomes an 
adept in book knowledge or skilled in the use of tools, 
an artist or an artisan, he is educated only when he 

2 



i8 Co mm 71 Seiise Didactic s 

reaches up to the full height of the opportunities which 
God and nature throw in his way. 

He who does this does his whole duty. Emerson 
has this in mind when he declares: "If a man can write 
a better book, preach a better sermon, or make a better 
mouse-trap than his neighbor, though he build his 
house in the woods, the world will make a beaten path- 
way to his den." 

Good teaching looks to the future of the child, while 

poor teaching is content with to-day and takes no note 

of to-morrow Education is the searchlight 

The child's gnablins^ the child to scan the horizon which 
t utuve . 

limits the possibilities of his being. It is 

the business of education to teach the pupil how to 
apply knowledge, for thus only does knowledge 
become power. A strong, sound body; a keen, sensi- 
tive conscience; an intellect trained to reason, to con- 
clude, to act, — these are the parallel lines along which 
education must move in order to reach the greatest 
degree of perfection. 

Study is an essential factor in the process of educa- 
tion. It is based upon attention, or close, persistent 
/ I'bort thought. It is a habit which can be culti- 

ance of vated and made stronger by application. 

study. -pj^g teacher must know what study is, and 

how to cultivate it, before he can induce others to 
study. 

The power to master a subject and to make it his 
own is lost to the pupil who has not been taught how 
to study Do not overlook the importance of this 
point, both in your preparatory work and in your actual 
teaching. 

Study is close application of the mind to the subject 
in hand. It is largely a habit which may be acquired 



The Nature and Character of Teacliirig ig 

through persistent effort. But it is a habit which fol- 
lows the pupil into business life, and ministers much 
to his success. The clerk often has to learn how to 
study after he leaves school. That is, he has to with- 
draw within himself and exclude all out- 
side affairs while he pays strict attention defiiied. 
to whatever his employer has committed to 
his charge. Self-interest incites him "to this He 
desires to retain his position, to achieve promotion, 
and to obtain a foothold from which he may climb to 
yet greater heights. 

The training necessary to gain this power of applica- 
tion must begin with the first lesson assigned to the 
child in school, and it must continue to the end of 
school life. It is the real work of the school; something 
to do, something to acquire within a given time. 

Rosenkranz insists that the plain distinction between 
work and play must be observed. "Work should never 
be treated as if it were play, nor play as if „ 
it were work." There is a marked tendency kranz's 
in our schools to-day to discard work — which ^'^^^' 
is study — and to su-bstitute in its place a kind of semi- 
study, which is but little better than play. 

The child learns how to study by studying. He 
must do most of the work himself. Lewis Ransom 
Fiske, in Ma7i Buildings says: "For either the book 
or the teacher to" do the whole work is robbing the 
child of power. It is worth immensely more for the 
boy to learn how to study one thing thoroughly, than 
to read a dozen things in a book." 

In order to study to the best advantage, there must 
be sufficient will-power to call in the wandering 
thoughts and fix them upon the lesson. In most cases 
of failure this is the cause. Begin with giving a 



20 Commo7i Se?ise Didactics 

short lesson and not too much time in which to learn 

it, and then insist upon close application and study 

during the allotted period. 

Lessons should be proportioned in length and in 

difficulty to the intellect of the child. Im- 
Immaturity , .^ . , • ^^ ^ , 

not a crime maturity is not a crime, ioo many teachers 

make their own ability to grasp and master, 
the criterion by which to judge the ability of the child. 
Development is a slow process. It is a question 
whether we do not at times hasten it so much as to 
induce a superficial knowledge. Give the seed time to 
germinate. Watch patiently the beginnings, and culti- 
vate a continuous growth. "Make haste slowly" is an 
excellent motto for the schoolroom. Do not think 
you are doing well because you are doing much. 

Training is only continual practice along a given or 
direct line. It often precedes the real work of instruc- 
tion, but when rightly and wisely directed it 
^ becomes an important aid in the develop- 
ment of mental power. To train a child is to cause 
him to do certain things in the best and most natural 
way. 

Physical training, as it leads to the formation of 
habits which make the child an agreeable or disagree- 
able member of the family or school, is by 
no means to be neglected. The first five 
years of the child's life ought to be devoted very 
largely to physical development. During the second 
five, thejnind should not be overfed. The mental diet 
should be carefully selected. Those methods should 
by all means be avoided which are calculated to make 
a mental or intellectual prodigy out of the little child. 

While I am at times filled with wonder at the intel- 
lectual feats performed by little children in some of 



The Nature and Character of Teaching 21 

our schools, 1 wonder still more at the supreme folly 
of the teaching which permits such things. On the 
other hand, when the child is ten years old the 
foundations for scholarship should have been laid. 
He should have some power of application, some habit 
of study, and should know the pleasure which comes 
from conquering difficulties. He should begin to 
realize what work is. 

Skill, as the expression of power, is the result of 
careful, painstaking training. Skill can best be 
acquired in youth. Natural or inherited ^kiii_ 
skill, shown by the aptitude of children for how best 
some particular line of work, can be much acquired. 
improved by practice. If allowed to fall into disuse it 
seems to be forgotten, and gradually to disappear as a 
controlling power. 

In all these things let there be intelligent freedom, 
so that every teacher may find for himself the way to 

The Open Door. 

Quotations Worth Reading 

tea ching 

Teaching is the art of promoting human growth. The efficient 
teacher understands the growing pupil and understands the subject 
taught. He completely adapts matter and method and leads 
learners to put forth their best efforts in the best ways. 

—Joseph Baldwin. 

All who propose to teach need to recollect that the very basis 
of fitness for teaching, so far as it can be gained from study, is a 
broad and accurate scholarship. 

—David P. Page. 

The term teaching, it is thus seen, is a little more comprehen- 
sive than the word instruction. An instructor, strictly speaking, 
is one who furnishes the mind with knowledge ; a teacher is one 
who furnishes the mind with knowledge, and at the same time 

aims to give mental culture. 

—Edward Brooks. 



22 Co mm 71 Sense Didactic s 

KNOWLEDGE 

Knowledge is gained by study and by observation. It is 
imparted by the printed page and living teacher and is gathered 
from a thousand different sources. "Life forces knowledge upon 
us," and whether he will or not man cannot escape knowledge. 

—Selected. 

To impart knowledge at the right time, in the best way, and in 
discreet measures is one test of a teacher's skill. It is a higher 
test if by pointing out the sources of knowledge he can lead the 
pupil to form habits of investigation and research such as will last 
him his lifetime. 

—Selected. 

DISCIPLINE 

Discipline is the result of training and study. In physical 
culture it gives a man control of his muscles, so that they are 
obedient to his will. In mental culture it gives him control of his 
intellectual powers, so that he is able under all circumstances to 
do the best work possible. In moral training discipline gives a 
man such control of himself bodily and mentally that he can resist 
temptation, discern good from evil, and make the best choice. 

—Selected. 

Through discipline rather than instruction the teacher renders 
it possible for the child in youth and the adult in later life to raise 
himself to higher levels of living. 

— Selected. 

INSTRUCTION 

The principal means employed in intellectual education is 
instruction. There is, in fact, no other way to develop the 
faculties than by exercising them. Now, intellectual exercise is 
study, and teaching is causing a pupil to study. 

■-Compayve. 

Instruction is the furnishing of the mind with knowledge. It 
is the process of developing knowledge in the mind of another. 
The term is derived from in, into, and struo, I build, meaning I 
build into. To instruct the mind is thus to furnish it with knowl- 
edge, to build up knowledge in the mind. 

— — Edward Brooks. 



Instruction is directly giving information — knowledge of facts, 
new ideas, and words — to the pupil. It should be done only for 
the purpose of stimulating the desire for more knowledge, and of 
furnishing material that the pupil cannot economically get for 
himself. 

— Ruric N. Roark. 



The Nature a?id Character of Teaching 2j 

EDUCA TION 

Education is any process or act which results in knowledge, or 
power, or skill. It includes not only teaching and learning, but 
all acts, processes and influences which occasion these results, 
whether as scholarship, culture, habit, or character. 

—Emerson E. White. 

Education is the science of human development. We cultivate 
plants, train animals and educate persons. Education makes 
the difference between the feeble infant and the strong man. 

—Joseph Baldwin. 

Education can only develop and form, not create. It cannot 
undertake to form a being into anything other than it was 
destined to be by the endowments originally received at the 
hands of nature. 

Education can only develop and unfold ; it cannot create any- 
thing new. 

—Rosenkranz. 

Education is a living into better things. 

— Grant Karr. 

STUDY 

Study is the attentive application of the mind to an object or 
subject for the purpose of acquiring a knowledge of it. Study 
involves persistent attention, and continued or prolonged holding 
of the mind to the knowing of an object by acts of the will. 

—Emerson E. White. 

Let the mind of the pupil be studied as we^! as the quality of 
the recitation determined. What has been learned should become 
known by the teacher, but how the student proceeds in gaining 
knowledge should also be investigated, and guidance afforded. 

— Lewis Ransom Fiske. 

TRAINING 

The systematic procedure of the teacher is implied in the word 
training. It means the continuous or periodic exercise of the 
faculty, with the definite purpose of strengthening it and 
advancing its growth. 

—James Sully. 

The teacher needs to observe, read, think, practice. He needs 
to sit at the feet of Jesus, of Aristotle, of Socrates, and of Pesta- 
lozzi, and learn methods from the masters. 

—Selected. 

Children may be trained so as to respond in the right way to 
any duty in life. If they see a misplaced article, they may, on 
catching sight of it, put it in its place as naturally as a dog points 
toward a bird for which the hunter is looking. 

—Reuben Post Halleck 



24 Common Sense Didac tic s 

Questions for Examination 

1. What do you understand by the expression, "the spirit of 

the teacher?" 

2. What is the necessity of freedom in the process of teaching? 
J. What does Dr. James say in his Talks to Teachers, which 

is applied in this chapter? 

4. What end is to be most ardently sought by the teacher in 

his work? 

5. Why is knowledge not always a means of discipline? 

6. When only may we say that knowledge is power? _ 

7. When may we say a man has a well disciplined mind? 

8. What is study? 

g. What is it to train a child? 
10. What is skill? How may it be acquired? 

Suggestions Worth Thinking About 

/. Do I know how to study? 

2. What conditions are favorable to close study? 

J. What treatment is best for the excessively nervous child? 

4. Are my pupils wasting their time? 

5. What professional progress am I making? 



CHAPTER II 

THE TEACHER 

The Master Builder 

The inspiration of the school is the presence of the living 
teacher. 

Above all, a teacher must be a scholar, and if he is to be a 
teacher of real power, he must be a man of wide and accurate 
scholarship. 

~W. H. Payne. 

Good methods of teaching are important, but they cannot 
supply the want of ability in the teacher. The Socratic method 
is good, but a Socrates behind the teacher's desk to ask questions 
is better. 

— Thomas M. Balliet, 

The woman who touched the hem of the Savior's garment felt 
at once the vivifying influences which were all the time going 
forth from the Great Teacher. Here we stand face to face with 
the greatest mystery of the teacher's art. 

—Nathan C. Schaeffer. 

THERE are some things which the teacher ought 
to be or do. There also are some things which 
he ought not to be or do, and these latter are of equal 
importance with the former. He ought not 
to be indifferent to his personal appearance. Personal 
No matter how small his monthly salary; no aiicT 
matter how meanly dressed his pupils may 
be; no matter though the people of the district are care- 
less as to cleanliness and neatness, the teacher is under 
obligations to place before the pupils an example 
which they may safely follow. 

If the teacher is a lady, then a trim dress, which 
costs but little, a clean apron kept in the desk for school 
use, a spotless white collar set off by a bit of blue ribbon 
tastefully tied at the throat, hair neatly brushed, teeth 

25 



26 Commo7i Se^ise Didactic s 

pearly white, finger nails immaculate as ivory, — these 
things will exert a more potent influence over thought- 
less boys and girls than switch or ferule can possibly 
have. The frown of such a teacher is a terror to evil- 
doers, and her smile is a perpetual reward to those 
who do well. 

With a male teacher, personal appearance is of 
equal consequence. Tidy linen, well-kept hands, pure 
breath uncontaminated with the odor of tobacco or 
liquor, garments that fit the person, with nothing of 
the dude, with everything of the gentleman, — we count 
these as little things, and yet they add to the strength 
of the strong and increase the wisdom of the wise. 

Fuller writes: "The good yeoman is a gentleman in 
ore, whom the next age may see refined; he is the 
wax, capable of a gentle impression, when the prince 
shall stamp it." 

Again, the teacher cannot be one person in the 
presence of the school, and an entirely different person 
in society at large. He cannot shut up his 
Uiiiforviity character in his desk, or confine it to the 
sincerity. schoolroom when he locks the door at night. 
The most essential thmg about a teacher is 
his character, and that cannot be separated from his 
individuality. The prime element in character is sin- 
cerity. Children unconsciously judge a man by this 
test, and if they find him wanting, they at once lose 
confidence in him. In the old days when the teacher 
"boarded round" a week in a family, parents could 
estimate the master's worth with a good degree of 
exactness. Now, about all they know of the school 
teacher is what the children tell them at home, and 
what they see of him as they meet him from time to 
time. 



TJie Teacher 2y 

Unfortunately they also have the habit of making 
the school and the teacher a principal theme of con- 
versation at their various gatherings. This is owing 
mainly to the paucity of startling events, especially in 
country life. It is not often done with malice or any 
evil intent, and yet it has proved the ruin of many 
schools. The teacher should so conduct himself out 
of school that no indiscreet act will furnish food for 
public talk or for idle rumor to feed upon. 

The teacher should not say or do things for the sole 
purpose of making himself popular. Such a course 
will sooner or later reveal the heartlessness which lies 
beneath. He should have convictions as to what is 
right or wrong, and stay by them courageously. But, 
on the other hand, he should not set himself up to be a 
"judge in Israel," nor needlessly antagonize those 
who with equal honesty hold opinions very different 
from his. 

There are some acts which maybe harmless in them- 
selves, but which are distasteful to the people whose 
children are under his care; from the practice of these 
the teacher ought to refrain. When Horace Mann 
sat on a stool at the tables in Antioch, partaking of 
food indifferently cooked, some one said to 
him: "Mr. Mann, how can you endure all ^^^^^ 
this?" He replied: "I can endure all 
things for the sake of these young people." So the 
conscientious teacher may reply to one who asks why 
he refrains from certain amusements: 'T can refrain 
from anything rather than forfeit the confidence of 
the people of the district, or weaken in the least my 
influence over the pupils under my charge." 

It is well if a teacher has the most wonderful of all 
gifts, the gift of silence. As in the family, so in the 



28 Commofi Se?ise Didactics 

school, there are many little incidents happening 
occasionally which should be corrected at the time, 
and then dropped. Above all, public noto- 
The gift riety should not be given to them by mak- 
ing them the subject of conversation out of 
school. A parent has the right to ask a teacher con- 
cerning the conduct and progress of his own child, 
and he is entitled to a candid, truthful answer. But 
he has no right to ask the same information concerning 
his neighbor's child. If he does, the prudent teacher 
will give him only a very general reply. A child's 
reputation is a part of his individuality, and ought 
not to be trifled with ruthlessly 

It is exceedingly unwise for a teacher to ventilate 
his school troubles to every one with whom he falls in 
company A teacher may destroy his own school by 
this wholesale slander of it. When the teacher talks 
about his pupils, the pupils retaliate by telling tales of 
the teacher. Then the parents become involved, and 
the usefulness of the school is greatly impaired, if not 
utterly destroyed. The author writes out of his own 
experience as superintendent of schools. More than 
once he has had occasion to say to a teacher who was 
making a dismal failure: "The trouble with your 
school is that you are talking too much about your 
affairs." 

Great harm comes to the school when teachers begin 
to criticize each other's work. A superintendent of a 
large system of schools, who is accustomed 
Criticizmg to examine carefully into a candidate's quali- 
teachers fications, among other questions asks this: 
"Has she a happy faculty of getting along 
with other teachers without friction?" He will not 
have a teacher in his corps, if he knows it, who cannot 



The Teacher 2g 

do this. Every teacher is entitled to the sympathy and 
support of his fellow workers. 

The introduction of one gossiping teacher into a 
corps is calculated to injure the entire organization in 
that city or town. At once there will spring up hard 
feelings, jealousies and suspicions; cruel innuendoes 
will be thrown out against one or another; without 
knowing why or how, the innocent often become 
involved with the guilty, and for the time being the 
schools are wrecked so far as usefulness is concerned. 

The ignorant teacher can be endured for a season; 
the incompetent can be got rid of; but from the 
teacher who talks there is no deliverance. His evil 
influence lasts long after he has disappeared from the 
scene. A teacher in a city in which there was much 
turmoil and talk once said to me: "My daily prayer 
to God is that He will give me grace to hold my 
tongue." I judge that his prayer was answered, as he 
has held his position for over forty years. 

This much I have felt called upon to say, as to what 
a teacher ought not to be or do. Upon the positive 
side of the question no little has been written and 
spoken by earnest teachers. Educational books without 
number have laid down lines along which every good 
teacher ought to walk. But, notwithstanding all this 
mass of instruction furnished by books and papers and 
at associations, the teacher has not yet reached perfec- 
tion. Probably he never will until the world enters 
upon the joys of the millennium. 

Under the limitations of this life the best advice that 
can be given a teacher is to cultivate cheer- 
fulness and hope; to meet difficulties one at ^' 
a time; to exercise good common sense, and more 



. JO Commo?i Sense Didactics 

than all, not to worry. Worry is killing more teachers 
in America to-day than all the hara work exacted 
from them by rules and regulations of the board. 
Brain and nerves are consumed by worry, as the fuel 
is by the flame. Take a stroll every day in the open 
air; take a Saturday for a party in the woods; get 
away from school and books; learn a lesson of growth 
from the grass as the green appears with the opening 
days of spring, of patience from the rocks, which 
endure alike the suns of summer and the frosts of 
winter; of faith from the flowers, which bloom and 
scent the air to-day though they perish to-morrow. 
Lucy Larcom says: 

And everywhere, here and always, 

If we would but open our eyes, 
We would find, through these beaten footpaths, 

Our way into paradise. 

- Dull earth would be dull no longer. 
The clod would sparkle a gem ; 
And our hands, at their commonest labor, 
Would be building Jerusalem 

A Russian prince visiting America once uttered this 
piayer: "O Lord, if I have to die soon, let me know 
a few days beforehand. Take me to a place where 
they have no appointments; take me to a place where 
I can hear something besides business. Give me one 
day of rest before I die, where I can see the bright 
sunshine and breathe the fresh air of heaven." 

Without egotism or boasting learn to 
a Food think well of yourself and to speak well of 

opinion of your work. Nine times out of ten 
yourse J. ^^ ^^^ ^^^ depreciates himself, and 
decries his own work, is a hypocrite who would count 
you his worst enemy if you should dare to murmur a 



The Teacher ji 

soulful "amen" to what he says of himself and his 
want of success. Emancipate yourself in all possible 
ways from the abominable spirit of worry. Try to realize 

The freer step, the fuller breath, 

The wide horizon's grander view; 
The sense of life that knows no death, 

The life that maketh all things new. 

The personal character of the teacher stands first in 
the test of qualifications. Integrity in all business 
transactions; a rigid compliance with the 
terms of contract; the conscientious dis- 
charge of every duty; freedom from all vices; a due 
regard to the potent influence of example over the 
lives of the children under his charge; a high-toned 
morality which cannot endure anything base or low — 
these are some of the points which school directors 
cannot scrutinize too closely in persons who desire to 
act as teachers in the schools. 

The teacher should hold in mind the issues which 
hang upon his work. He must himself be all which he 
desires his pupils to become. In addition to the above, 
cleanliness of person, neatness of attire, pleasing 
manners, correctness of expression, gentlemanly or 
ladylike bearing, can best be induced in the pupils by 
the example of the teacher. (See page 25.) 

Integrity is a stronger word than honesty; it reaches 
farther; it searches out the motives which govern a 
man's actions. A teacher with a deep sense 
of integrity will never for a moment disre- Integrity 
gard a contract, no matter whether it is honesty. 
verbal or written. A contract is equally 
binding upon teacher and directors, and one party has 
no more right than the other to disregard its terms. 
The honor of our calling is at stake here. 



^2 Co7nmon Sense Didactic s 

A teacher of prominence was offered a more desir- 
able position in the middle of the year. His board 
decided that they could not release him consistently 
with the interests of the school under their care. He 
at once wrote to the proper officials: "I have a con- 
tract here and I cannot honorably accept your offer." 
He did what was right and commendable. Any other 
course would have left him open to criticism. 

As this is a heart to heart talk we may speak of 
some things in confidence. Lately I saw an inquiry 
blank which a city superintendent sends to 
Some _ persons whose names are given as references 
confidence, t)y candidates for positions in the public 
schools. Among other questions was this: 
"Does he pay his debts promptly?" There is no habit 
which will ruin a teacher's reputation more quickly 
than that of running in debt at the stores. If necessary 
to ask for credit the obligation should be met without 
fail when pay day comes. The reputation of being 
strictly reliable in business transactions is just as 
necessary to the teacher as it is to the business man. 

Another question was this: "Does he exhibit any 
interest in his pupils outside of his school duties?" 
This is a very important point. The most skillful 
disciplinarians govern their schools as much through 
the influence which they exert out of school as by 
commands and restraints imposed when school is in 
session. It is the "unconscious tuition" which knows 
no rest that really governs the school, if it is well 
governed. Channing writes: "Parents should seek an 
educator for the young of their families who will 
become to them a hearty and efficient friend, counselor, 
coadjutor in their work." And he adds: "Such is the 
teacher we need and his value cannot be paid in gold." 



The Teacher jj 

Payne says: "The teacher must be a scholar." (See 
page 25.) The scholarship should be broad without 
being shallow; it must be sufficient to meet 
all the needs of the school— but it should Scholar- 
not be obtained by cramming for the Cramming. 
occasion. There can be no habit more de- 
structive of genuine scholarship than that of cramming 
for a certificate examination. The information thus 
gained is not permanently in possession of the mind; it 
perishes with the using of it. This custom is too com- 
mon among teachers. It is not productive of thought 
or mental strength, and under such conditions the exam- 
ination is no test of the candidate's fitness for teaching. 

More than this, it seems to me not to be consistent 
with moral honesty, because the teacher does not 
appear in his true light His apparent knowledge is 
only pretension, a sham, and will avail nothing in his 
school work. The examiner has as much reason for 
rejecting a candidate who has crammed for the exam- 
ination as he has for refusing a certificate to one who 
is ignorant. 

The teacher shoyld be a generous reader of good 
books, but not an omnivorous reader of everything 
which falls in his way. He should be a 
student, and it is often well for the school Reading 
if he is pursuing some chosen line of read- books. 
ing or investigation for his own interest. 
His scholarship should lead to a development of his 
powers of thought. 

There are too many teachers whose scholarship is 
superficial, who skim over the surface, who never dive 
in search of treasures which are apt to be hidden in 
the deep places. The best teacher is one whose soul 
is imbued with a love of knowledge, and who can 
3 



j^ Co mm 71 Sense Didactics 

bring to his classes the ripe fruits of a mind thor- 
oughly trained to reason, to judge, to conclude — in a 
word, trained to think. 

The teacher should never come to the end of his 
resources. To avoid this he should be a reader of 
educational literature, and a student of 
^^^ ■ whatever branches he undertakes to teach. 
It is a credit to a teacher when it can be said of him 
that he studies the lessons which he expects to hear 
the pupils recite. 

"After beauty and vigor of character, there is 
nothing that so wins the respect and admiration of 
pupils as fullness and accuracy of preparation." 

A very successful teacher once said: "If I have had 
any success in teaching it is because I have never per- 
mitted myself to go before a class without careful 
preparation." Another, a master in the classroom, 
says: "Every day should add something new to the 
outfit of the teacher. From the first day with the 
primary grade to the last of the high school or college 
the teacher who would succeed cannot safely neglect 
special preparation for the day's work, ever seeking 
for some means for securing a closer sympathy with 
his pupils, some way of presenting the subject more 
naturally and more efficiently, some new illustration, 
some truer aim, some higher motive." (See page 12.) 

Bear in mind, however, that the pupil studies with the 
view of reciting the lessons; the teacher should study 
with the view of conducting the recitation 
How the gQ ^g ^Q ^j^j ^j^g pupil in getting the most 
should possible out of the lesson. This point is 

^Oi^i^^^ worthy of careful consideration by the 

teacher. It is one thing to run over the 
lesson just before the class is called, with a view of 



The Teacher J5 

knowing what is in it; it is a very different thing to 
prepare it with the view of ascertaining what points 
will need explanation and elucidation, in what respects 
supplemental information may be given, errors cor- 
rected and principles restated. Probably it is true 
that teachers fail to grow because of the tendency of 
the mind to fall into certain grooves and channels. In 
our common schools this danger is increased by the 
multitude of lessons which the teacher must hear each 
half day. The danger is not much, if any, lessened in 
our high schools in which specialists are employed in 
different branches. 

We sometimes designate this tendency as "falling 
into the ruts." It can be partially avoided by careful 
study of the best methods, by reading the best books, 
and by a thoughtful adaptation of knowledge to the 
everyday work of the school. But don't be dis- 
couraged because you cannot entirely rid yourself of 
the proclivity. It is incident to life in every calling. 
To-day does not vary much from yesterday; to-mor- 
row will not vary greatly from to-day. The difference 
between to-day and one hundred years previous is the 
result of the slow increments of daily growth and 
progress. Compare the work you are doing now with 
that which you attempted years ago, and perhaps you 
will find encouraging evidences of advancement and 
power. Remember, moreover, that life without 
growth is sevenfold death. 

Morgan says: "A man without a heart has no 
business to be a schoolmaster." One of 
the strongest elements which is found in ^y^^ipcithy 
the life of every teacher is sympathy. It patience. 
is no part of the teacher's vocation to 
repress the self-activity of the child, but to guide 



j6 Co mm 71 Seiise Didactic s 

it so that it may become a factor in his growth. (See 
page 32.) 

The heart of the little child responds to loving 
words and kind deeds, as the strings of the instrument 
to the touches of the skillful player. As in the mirror 
face answereth to face, so ought the heart and con- 
science of the child to answer to the heart and 
conscience of the teacher. 

Patience combined with firmness, with no show of 
severity, yet with no slackness in maintaining good 
order, with a deep abiding interest in whatever 
promotes the welfare of each child at home as well as 
at school — these must be included in the teacher who 
deserves success. It is an easy thing to keep school; 
but it is a great and noble thing to be a true teacher. 

If the building is to be fitly joined together, a 
temple worthy to be the dwelling place of the soul, 
there must be 

The Master Builder. 

Quotations Worth Reading 

personality. 

Society is waiting, calling — earnestly, anxiously — for men and 
women of broader culture and nobler nature — men and women 
of quick intelligence, of enlightened understanding, of large heart 
and generous impulse, to take these little ones by the hand and 
lead them into the pleasant ways of wisdom, virtue, usefulness, 
and happiness. 

—George Howland. 

Survey these thickly seated benches. Before us are clustered 
the children of to-da3\ the men of to-morrow, the immortals of 
eternit}^ ! What costly works of art, what splendid galleries of 
sculpture or of painting, won by a nation's arms, or purchased by 
a nation's wealth, are comparable, in value, to the treasures we 
have in these children? 

—Horace Mann. 

Doing the best always, arouses enthusiasm, earnestness and 
courage on the part of the doer. It stimulates persistence and 
opens a vista of better things before. 

— Francis W Parker. 



The Teacher jy 

SCHOLARSHIP. 

It is the man who takes in who can give out. The man who 
does not do the one soon takes to spinning his own fancies out of 
his interior, like a spider, and he snares himself at last as well as 
his victims. 

— Dr. John Brown. 

First of all, the teacher must be a scholar, and no part of his 
professional education must be conducted at the expense of 
scholarship. Under scholarship I would include some sensible 
degree of literary culture, one indication of which is a pronounced 
love of good books. 

-IV. H. Payne. 

Going to his class so full of the sujbect, that were the text- 
book annihilated, he could make another and better one — he will 
have, no difficulty to secure attention. 

— David P Page. 

A person cannot teach a rule of arithmetic intelligently without 
having himself mastered many advanced rules. Your own expe- 
rience, if you watch it, will force this truth upon you. 

—/. G. Pitch. 

GROWTH. 

The price of retaining what we know is always to seek to know 
more. We preserve our learning and mental power only by 
increasing them. 

— Henry Darling. 

We are put here to grow, and we ought to grow, and to use all 
means of growth according to the laws of our being. 

— Edward H. Clarke. 

A true teacher never thinks his education complete, but is 
always seeking to add to his own knowledge. The moment any 
man ceases to be a systematic student he ceases to be an effective 
teacher. 

—J. G. Fitch. 
SYMPA THY. 

The following extracts from that prince of English school- 
masters, Edward Thring, will bear careful study: 

A teacher is a combination of heart, head, artistic training and 
favoring circumstances. Like all other high arts, life must have 
free play or there can be no teaching. 

Noble character is trained by noble examples of life, and by 
honest surroundings, whether in word or deed. The highest 
beliefs and the most true work train noble character. The 
teacher must have high beliefs, and be allowed to teach in their 
spirit. 

If all the bones are put into lessons, and all the loveliness, the 
life, the feelings, the pleasure flung away, no one need wonder 
that lessons have ill-luck. 



j8 Common Sense Didactics 

Light up the magic lantern of common things. 

Yes, gentlemen; and we also, in doing this, have discovered 
the first law of teaching, the first article of the teacher's creed: 
work from the inside outwards. 

Any fool with knowledge can pour it into a clever boy ; but it 
needs the skilled workman to be able to teach. 



Questions for Examination 

1. What do you understand by the word sincerity? 

2. What importance attaches to the teacher's personal appear- 

ance''' 
J. Why should the teacher refrain from continually talking of 

school affairs in public? 
4. What is said of common honesty? 
J. How much and what should the teacher read? 

6. Distinguish two ways of studying a lesson. 

7. How may a teacher hope to keep out of the ruts? 

8. With what end in view should a teacher read books and 

papers? 
g. What is it to be a man of integrity? 
JO. What is the effect upon the teacher of the habit of worry- 
ing? What is it to worry? 



Suggestions Worth Thinking About 

J. Who was George Howland? 

2. A teacher in a school paying $600 per year received one 
Friday an offer of a school in a neighboring city at a salary 
of $1,000, but he must take the position, if at all, on the 
following Monday. What was the right course for him 
to follow? 

j>. What is a reasonable amount of recreation? 

4. Who was Socrates? 

5. What is meant by the Socratic method of instruction? 



CHAPTER III 

PREPARATION FOR TEACHING 

Putting on the Armor 

But evil is wrought 

By want of thought, 

As well as want of heart 

— Thomas Hood. 

If not to-day, then on some far future day, you will answer 
some questions differently by reason of what you are thinking 
now. 

— Willia m Ja mes. 

The human racer cannot possibly do his work as such if he is 
tied down to one place, pressed by one dull, unchanging routine, 
and perpetually in conflict with sordid cares. 

— Edward Thring. 

Other things being equal, the best work will be done by those 
having the best means of doing it ; the best furrowing by the best 
plow, the best weaving by the best loom, the best sailing by the 
best boat. 

—Addison Ballard. 

IN ANY calling the best work is done by the best 
thinkers. Whether the man is an artisan or an 
artist; whether he is engaged in a pro- 
fession or follows a trade, the root and ^ ^^S ^ • 
origin of his success is the amount of thought which 
he puts into his work. 

It is not my purpose here to define thought or to 
trace the process of thinking. To do this and to sug- 
gest methods of developing the power of thought in 
the child would require an entire volume. 

I take it for granted that the teacher who reads this 
book is a thoughtful person. If you are not, then you 
ought not to be a teacher. There is no other profes- 
sion or vocation which calls for such careful pains- 

39 



40 Co mm 71 Se7ise Didactics 

taking thought as that in which you are engaged. The 
end is worth the exertion. Joseph Hall writes; "The 
fuller treads upon that cloth which he means to whiten, 
and he that would see the stars by day must not climb 
up into some high mountain, but must descend to the 
lower cells of the earth." 

The mistakes which the carpenter or the blacksmith 
makes can be repaired; or the material, if spoiled, can 
be replaced. It is not so in teaching. Every mistake 
y, ,. ^ here is lasting, and its effects cannot be 
has lasting eradicated. The wound may heal, but the 
results. g^^j. ^ji^ remain. No dependence can be 

placed upon a thoughtless teacher. Chance, a run of 
good luck, may carry such a teacher through a term 
or a year, but such teaching has no fruition in the 
lives of pupils. Like the ship under ballast, it reaches 
the port but it brings no cargo. , 

We are apt to praise that which is practical, and to 
sneer at the theoretical. Yet theory has its value. 
The thoughts which are in the mind now may write 
lines which we shall read with profit in future years. 
Our actions to-day, more often than we realize, are 
determined by the thoughts of yesterday. In the 
school, as in business, action which is not based upon 
thought and reason is exceedingly hazardous. 

I am desirous to have you read these chapters in a 
thoughtful, receptive spirit. Some quotations will be 
given you which are worth committing to heart. 
Many of the suggestions you will find are not new, and 
yet they will perhaps be all the more weighty because 
they are old and well seasoned. 

The teacher should not undervalue knowledge. It 
has its appropriate place and use in your equipment. 
Not only is the possession of it desirable, but the 



Pr£paratio7i for Tc a cJiiiig 4.1 

habits of application and the discipline of mind which 
come through its acquirement will aid you in your 
work in the school. Cultivate a close friendship with 
wisdom, "and with all thy getting get ^.^owledge. 
understanding." However, it is not the 
amount of knowledge which the teacher possesses, but 
the ability so to impart knowledge to his pupils as to 
arouse self-activity of mind and induce growth, which 
counts for success in the schoolroom. 

I have already said that knowledge is not power. 
(See page 16.) It is only applied knowledge which is 
power. The man on the huge locomotive is more 
powerful than the man driving the ox cart, only 
because he has more resources at his command and 
knows how to use them. The best teacher is the man 
or woman who is most thoroughly alive to the needs 
of the present hour. Not "What shall I do next,'' but 
"What shall I do 7iow'' is the question which meets us 
at every turn in life. The past counsels, the future 
incites, but the present is imperative. 

A block of granite weighing thirty tons must be 
lifted to its place in the monument. All other work 
must stop until this is done. The skillful engineer plans 
the great trestle-work, a hundred feet in height. The 
workmen brace it on every side. On the top is a little 
dummy engine fitted to do its master's aj^j^j- 
bidding. The engineer lets down a great turn of 
block of pulleys which the men below knowledge. 
fasten to a hook in the very center of the block. Then 
the little engine begins to throw out quick puffs of 
steam, like the labored breathing of a man lifting a 
heavy load. The ropes shorten, the heavy mass of 
stone goes up, inch by inch, slowly but surely, until it 
reaches the required level. The engine travels back- 



42 Co mm 71 Sense Didactic s 

ward along its track, halts at the direction of its master, 
and deposits the granite on the place designed for 
it as easily as one can lift a book to its place on the 
shelf. It accomplishes in an hour the work which a 
hundred men could not accomplish in a week. 

Notice here the intelligent application of knowledge 
at every step to produce the desired result. From the 
day the granite is lifted from its bed in the quarry until 
it finds its position in the monument, there is evi- 
dence of that power and skill which must accom- 
pany knowledge in order that it may be employed 
for some useful purpose. 

A man may possess a multitude of precious stones 
and rare gems, but if there is no market for them he 
will go hungry and naked despite his store. So, 
though a man possess all knowledge and all wisdom, 
still his life may be only a blank page in the history of 
his times. Unless you can link your knowledge to the 
wants of men, or use it to make existence more 
endurable for others, you may about as well not have it. 
It is your business to hold up before your pupils the 
worth of knowledge as a means of usefulness and 
power in the world of matter, as well as in the spiritual 
world. 

Discipline of mind comes through close application. 
That knowledge is most valuable which it costs us 
some effort to gain. The close student does not 
always succeed as a teacher, but the real teacher is 
always a student and a close observer. (See page ZZ-) 

Knowledge has a practical value. The alphabet is 
the basis of all knowledge. The multiplication table is 
at the foundation of all mathematics. Facts, hard 
and dry, as we sometimes term them, are the founda- 
tion of all thought. There can be no reasoning with- 



Preparatioiifor Teaching ^j 

out some fact as the basis upon which to build. The 
greatest teachers the world has ever known have been 
men and women who have trained the practical 
memory to retain facts and to reproduce value of 
them as facts when the future needs them. "'^^^ ^ ^^' 

Do not be afraid of a fact because some one discov- 
ered or demonstrated it before you were born. The 
accumulated knowledge of the world is at your 
disposal, and out of this mass you are to select some 
things which the pupil will need in active life, and 
other things vv'hich will incite him to the greatest effort 
of which his nature is capable. 

The pupil goes to school to obtain knowledge. It is 
likely to be the fault of the teacher if the pupil fails. 
If, on the other hand, knowledge is all the pupil gains, 
then his schooling is deficient at a vital point, because 
knowledge which is unproductive of thought is like the 
dead tree, bearing neither fruit nor foliage. 

If the man on the platform states as a fact that 

which you know is not true, by so much you are the 

better man of the two. If you state to your pupils 

that which purports to be a fact or truth in 

history or science, and afterward they dis- T)a7iger of 
^ ' . -^ zgnoratice. 

cover that you have made a mistake, by 

just so much have you lost your hold upon the class. 
In short, as you have gained a knowledge of facts 
from books, or from your own experience, so it is 
your business to impart these facts to others. More 
than this, as you have accepted a large part of your 
knowledge from others without demonstration or ques- 
tion, your pupils should accept as much from you in 
the same spirit. But it is always dangerous for a 
teacher to display his ignorance in the presence of 
his class. 



44 Cofnmon Sense Didactics 

I say without hesitation to those who read this 
chapter that the child comes to you to be informed, 
and that it is your business to see that when he leaves 
your tuition he has such an accumulation of knowledge 
as will aid him in maintaining his self-respect in any 
walk of life, whether it be the lowest or the highest. 

The teacher must carefully observe the distinction 

between character and reputation; between what, in 

^j . his inner consciousness, he knows himself to 
Character . ' 

and repii- be, and that which he seems to others to 
tatwji. i^g^ Character concerns the heart and the 

life of the teacher as a permanent force in his work. 

The chief aim of the school is not character building, 
but character growth. You can no more build character 
than you can build a tree. When you attempt through 
any scheme of ethics to form character for the child you 
weaken his moral nature. Here, as everywhere, it is 
what the child does for himself that gives him strength. 

We send the child out of school into life, as we 
think, well furnished for all good works. We have 
buttressed him about with maxims and precepts and 
sermons. We have required him to learn the choicest 
extracts from ancient and modern literature, and even 
from holy writ. And when the hour of temptation 
comes he fails to stand the test. His reputation is 
ruined, his standing in society slips from under him, 
his character falls like the house built upon the sand. 
It is not difificult to discern the reason. His parents, 
his teachers attempted to build his character for him. 
The inward work of character growth, whereby his 
character and his reputation become inseparable, was 
wholly wanting. This is one of the most serious mis- 
takes which the teacher can possibly make. In many 
cases it is fatal to right living. 



Prcparatio7i for T e acJiiiig ^5 

Some one says: "Conduct is two-thirds of life." He 
is wrong; conduct is all of life. It is the stream by 
whose waters we may judge the purit}^ of the hidden 
springs from which it flows. 

Character grows through every exertion of the will 
and every impulse of the conscience. Right thoughts, 
right motives, right actions, — these furnish material for 
growth of character, as the soil, the air, the sunlight 
are necessary to the growth of the tree. These things 
are as essential to the teacher as to the pupil. 

But character is altogether another thing from repu- 
tation. The former is what the man really ^, 

... , . ,.,,., ^ Character 

is; it is the answer to the question: What vs. repu- 

am I in the light of eternity?" The latter t(^i^oii. 
is what others think and say of him; what the world 
estimates him to be. 

The reputation of the teacher is of great value both 
to him and to the school. It should be carefully 
guarded. He should take great pains that it receive 
neither blot nor blemish. It is not a cowardly excuse 
for a teacher to say, "I cannot because it will injure 
my reputation." 

Character, however, is a- part of a man's individu- 
ality; it is the man himself. Knowledge ministers to 
it; principles of right action underlie it; the will 
strengthens it. Character is the outward development 
of the inner life of the man. Some one says: "Repu- 
tation is what men and w^omen think of us. Character 
is what God and the angels know of us." 

Still, it is your duty to guard your reputation with 
the greatest care. Give no one any occasion to speak 
evil of you. As the little foxes eat up the vines, so 
little indiscretions, careless expressions, thoughtless 
actions destroy the reputation of the teacher. 



46 Commo?i Sense Didactics 

The reflex influence of the teacher's reputation, as it 
affects the pupils in the school, is often very marked. 
The great strength of the word "ought" must be made 
a power first in your own life, and then in the life of 
the pupil. 'T ought io do this; I ought 7iot to do that"; 
these words convey a world of meaning. 

It is always well to consider: "What influence will 
this proposed action have upon my pupils?" There is 
only one conclusion which a conscientious teacher can 
reach. "If it will injure my reputation in this commu- 
nity, and thus weaken my influence over the school, I 
ought not to do it." This is a golden rule — only 
remember in every doubtful case to keep on the safe 
side. (See page 27.) 

In all things cherish a feeling of humanity toward 
your pupils. Their failings, their faults, their short- 
comings are those usually incidental to child 
withfu/zls nature, which is only human nature in its 
purest form. Sympathy is a strong bond 
between teacher and pupil. Sympathy begets sympa- 
thy, and thus lightens the daily toil of the school. 

More even than this: while you are sorry for their 
failures you should be equally ready to rejoice in their 
success. When you say to a pupil, "I am sorry you 
failed, try it again," your sympathy is an encourage- 
ment. When you say to another, "You have done 
well; that is an improvement," then your sympathy is 
a stimulant to yet greater exertions. This was Dr. 
Arnold's strong hold upon his pupils. Read what one 
of his pupils says of him at the close of this chapter. 

Emerson says that the only way to have a friend is 
to be one. So the only way to gain the sympathy of 
your pupils is to give them yours. Assure them, not 
by your words alone, but by your actions, that you 



Pr e p aratioii for T e acJiiiig ^y 

have an abiding interest in their welfare; in their games 
as well as in their studies; in their life at home as well 
as at school. Hannah More says that she has never 
met a boy, and she has known many, who would be 
rude and disrespectful to a teacher openly and patiently 
seeking to do him good. Indifference on the part of 
the teacher breeds contempt on the part of the pupil. 

"If the pupil fails to-day and I help him, and he 
fails again to-morrow and next day, how long shall I 
stay by him?" Just so long as he is your pupil. If 
you give up before he does you are a cowardly teacher. 

Consider for a moment what it is to come into heart 
contact with your pupils. Thus only can you entei 
into their lives, know their motives, understand their 
impulses and influence their actions. It is not so much 
to live for the pupil as it is to live witJi him; not so 
much to control him by your strong will as to lead him 
by your example. Study to know the child as you 
know yourself. Give him your sympathy in his 
troubles, your help in his difficulties, and your wise 
counsel in tem.ptation. It is unreasonable to expect 
the child to be any wiser or better than you are your- 
self. 

You are not to forget, however, that the purpose of 
education is to enable the pupil to become in the end 
independent of his teacher, so that growth 
may continue when school is finished, e^tce the 
By all means avoid that weakly, sentimen- purpose of 
tal kind of sympathy which spends itself 
in pity and caresses, but imparts no stimulating 
power or force. Sympathy must not antagonize the 
will; rather it should reenforce it. It must be healthy, 
wholesome and helpful. After all, apply to the child 
what Thoreau says: "You cannot dream yourself into 



48 Com7no7i Se?ise Didactics 

a character; you must hammer and forge yourself one." 
Charles Kingsley writes: 

Be good, sweet maid, and let who will be clever ; 

Do noble things, not dream them all day long ; 
And so make life, death, and that vast forever, 

One grand sweet song. 

You have days when you are moody, perhaps irri- 
table; so has the child. There are times with you 
when you are discouraged, and when things in general 
go wrong — "off days" you call them. The 
allowances, child has his "off days," and some allow- 
ance must be made for it by his teacher. 
Strive to interest him in whatever conduces to the 
welfare of the school. Throw some responsibility upon 
him and hold him to answer for results. Take him 
into partnership, as it were, and while you retain the 
position as senior partner consult with him and estab- 
lish a mutual interest. An old Latin author says: 
"I think nothing foreign to me which concerns human- 
ity." The teacher, in the same spirit, should be able 
to say: "I think nothing foreign to me which concerns 
any pupil in my school." 

Burke, in one of his speeches, says: "My rigor 
relents, I pardon something to the spirit of liberty." 
Why may not the teacher sometimes say: "My rigor 
relents, I pardon 7mich to the spirit of childhood." 
Childhood should be made as happy as possible. 
Obedience and attention to lessons should be exacted, 
but not with frowns and scolding tones. Smiles and 
pleasant greetings and loving words will win the heart 
and soul, and these are the best weapons that the 
teacher has against the little annoyances which 
children so often thoughtlessly occasion. 



Pr e p ar ation for Tcachi?ig ^g 

One element of success, the power of adapting one's 
self to the situation, must not be passed unnoticed. 
A weak teacher is controlled or over-awed Adapta- 
by circumstances, and consequently fails. bility. 

A strong person controls them, and makes of them 
stepping-stones for passing over difficult places. 
Emergencies test the teacher. The power to meet 
them successfully is the sure criterion of skill. 

The unexpected is always happening, and the school 
affords no exception to the general rule. A blunder 
may be disastrous, and in an instant undo the work of 
months. It is no excuse to say, "I did not have time 
to think." You can do an immense amount of think- 
ing in a moment's space. Coolness, self-possession, is 
nine-tenths of the battle. 

Remember also that every school has an individu- 
ality of its own, depending largely upon its environ- 
ments. Different communities place different estimates 
upon the teacher's work. In one district the teacher 
is appreciated; in another she is left alone; and in 
another she is opposed and hindered in her work more 
frequently by the parents than by the pupils. 

Hence a teacher who succeeds in one school may 
utterly fail in another because he is not able to con- 
form his measures and his school policy to the sur- 
rounding circumstances. Backbone is a most excellent 
characteristic in a teacher, but even backbones must 
sometimes bend, and often it is better to bend than to 
break. There is something worth considering in what 
we term the "eternal fitness of things." 

Give much thought to the individuality of the 
school; to the conditions which control it. The 
teacher who endeavors to know the past history of the 
school will find some points which will serve as a 



50 Com7no?i Se7ise Didactics 

guide in avoiding trouble. Talk but little, ask few 
questions, think carefully, observe closely, and act 
without timidity or hesitation when it is time to act. 

After thoroughly considering all the surroundings of 
the school, the character of the people of the district, 
the attainments and dispositions of the scholars, then 
the question to be decided upon is not "What did I 
do in my last school?" but, "What is the best and most 
sensible course to be taken with the school which I 
now have in hand?" 

You may find it impossible to bring everything in 
every school up to your ideal standard. Having done 
Ideal your best, you will be a happier and a 

standard better teacher when you learn to be con- 
atways be tented with that. There are teachers who 
.attained. are never happy unless they have some- 
thing over which they can worry. Take things as you 
find them, and before you leave them make them as 
much better as you can. 

Common sense, practical sense, is of great service to 
the teacher. The ability to look ahead and forsee the 
evil in season to avoid it, requires thought and judg- 
ment, quick reasoning and clear insight into the drift 
of affairs, and it is a talent worth cultivating. 

Emerson says that every day is a crisis in one's life. 
The power to meet that crisis so that it may inure to 
his benefit constitutes success. Every day brings the 
teacher face to face with some crisis in the school- 
room, either of discipline or instruction, and he needs 
always to be ready to meet it. 

Allow me to say a word here upon a much vexed 
subject. Don't contract to teach a school unless you 
have reason to believe that you can adapt yourself to 
all the circumstances surrounding it. Take with you a 



Preparation for Teaching 5/ 

spirit of self-sacrifice, if thereby you can benefit your 
pupils. 

Employ the gift thou hast, 

Whate'er it be, with greatest care, 
And this endeavor shall not be the last; 

Each good performed, another shall prepare. 

It is the director's duty and business to investigate 
as to your character, education and ability before he 
offers to contract with you. It is your business and 
privilege to investigate the conditions which you will 
have to meet in the discharge of your duties before 
you sign the contract. This is more than a privilege; 
it is a duty which you owe to yourself. If you feel 
that it is questionable whether you can adapt yourself 
to the school, the people, the requirements, you run 
the risk of a disastrous failure in accepting the posi- 
tion. 

A careful observance of the laws which promote 
personal health, and also of such general laws of sanita- 
tion as concerns the school and its sur- 
roundings, must be kept continually in 
mind. Neglect to do this is criminal. 

There is nothing more essential to your success than 
a strong body, as free as possible from aches, pains 
and weakness. With the senses well developed and 
the bodily organs in good working order, teaching is a 
joy and a pleasure. When the reverse is true the 
school hours drag; there is no energy nor enthusiasm 
in the work, and the process of teaching becomes a 
drudgery. Oliver Wendell Holmes says: "The weari- 
ness of instruction which comes to a teacher whose 
faculties have been overworked and exhausted can be 
known only to one who has experienced it." 



^2 Co 771 in on Sense Didactics 

There is no more pitiable sigtit in the world than a 
school of bright, active, intelligent children, who love 
fun, in charge of a nervous, dyspeptic, head-aching 
teacher, despondent and gloomy, who looks upon the 
child as an untrained savage and punishes every 
childish prank as a crime. Keep in mind these words 
which Coleridge wrote: 

O'er wayward childhood wouldst thou hold firm rule, 
And sun thee in the light of happy faces, 
Love, hope and patience, let these be thy graces. 
And in thine own heart let them first keep school. 

The duties of the school are enervating. They are 
the more so because they are performed under 
unfavorable circumstances. The atmosphere of the 
schoolroom, even when the most approved means of 
ventilation are resorted to, will become more or less 
vitiated. In the ordinary schoolroom, although the 
windows are occasionally opened, the air, after the 
first hour of each session is positively poisonous. (See 
page 55.) 

If you would enjoy your work take daily and vigor- 
ous exercise in the open air. Avoid the pernicious 
habit of being in the schoolroom at eight 
P^^^}^<^^ous eyei-y morning to prepare the day's work, 
and of remaining till five at night to have 
pupils make up their lessons. This is a habit into 
which teachers fall, but it is a wicked habit. Concern- 
ing a school in which it is the custom to keep children 
after school to make up lessons, one of two things is 
true: either the lessons are too long, or else the pupils 
are idle and allowed to play when they ought to be at 
work. 

Equally injurious and wearing is the habit of taking 
a mass of school work home, papers to look over and 



Preparatio7i for Teacki?ig 5j 

correct, enough to keep you busy until after you ought 
to be in bed. You wake in the morning tired, you go 
to school irritable and peevish, and before night 
comes you are positively cross. You should take time 
for reasonable, healthful recreation if you desire to be 
fresh and vigorous for your work. Observe these three 
points: Exercise, sleep and diet. They are abso- 
lutely vital to your usefulness in school. (See page 29.) 
Dryden says: 

Better to hunt in fields for health unbought, 
Than call the doctor for a nauseous draught. 
*rhe wise for cure on exercise depend; 
God never made his work for man to mend. 

The problem of complete physical being is not easily 
solved, and none but general laws can be laid down. 
You must study your muscular and nervous organiza- 
tion, and adapt your methods of living to your own 
peculiar needs. To be able to do each day's work 
with the least waste of energy, and to come to the end 
of the day, the week, the term, the year even, without 
a sense of prostration, of breaking down of body and 
mind, should be your aim. 

One thing more. The presence of a strong, active, 
vigorous man or woman in the teacher's place reacts 
upon pupils and aids materially in their physical devel- 
opment. It is your duty to keep well, to observe the 
laws of health, and in all this to be an example to your 
pupils. 

You will attain the success you so much desire by 
careful attention to details in 

Putting on the Armor. 



54 Commo 71 Sense Didactic s 

Quotations Worth Reading 

THOUGHT. 

All ye who possess the power of thought, prize it well! 
Remember that its flight is infinite; it winds about over so many- 
mountain tops, and so runs from poetry to eloquence, it so flies from 
star to star, it so dreams, so loves, so aspires, so hangs both over 
mystery and fact, that we may well call it the effort of man to 
explore the home, the infinite palace of his heavenly Father. 

— Swing, 
KNOWLEDGE. 

Knowledge is the food of the mind. And as food may overload 
and enfeeble the body, and is to be received only as there is a 
capacity of digestion and assimilation, and ultimate reference to 
action, so knowledge may overload and enfeeble the mind, and 
should be received only as it can be reflected on and arranged, 
and so incorporated into our mental being as to give us power for 
action. 

—James Johonnot. 
CHARACTER AND REPUTATION. 

One is apt to forget that when we speak of anything or anybody 
as good, we have no absolute standard, and speak only by some 
comparison often made unconsciously. The very best man we 
know we should probably consider a very indifferent angel. This 
latent comparison lurks under all adjectives. It has occurred to 
me that our estimate of ourselves often differs from other people's 
■estimate of us, because we compare ourselves with those only who 
are much in our minds, and the same persons are not likely to be 
much in the minds of others. 

—R. H. Quick. 
SYMPA THY. 

Froebel's real "gift," infinitely more valuable than the cylin- 
der, the sphere and the cube, is the love for childhood that his 
ardent zeal has inspired in the hearts of his disciples. The power 
of the kindergarten, as it seems to me, lies in the fact that the 
teacher, so to speak, now listens to the heart-beats of the little 
child. 

— W. H. Payne. 

Directly our sympathetic emotions fail to affect us toward 
action, and we are content to have our feelings stirred without 
making any effort in behalf of the distress of others, our sympathy 
degenerates into mere sentimentality. We should do our best to 
prevent this degeneration in the case of children. 

Joseph Landon. 

Hence each pupil felt assured of Arnold's sympathy in his own 
particular growth and character of talent ; in striving to cultivate 



Pre par ation for Teachi?ig ^^ 

his own gifts, in whatever direction they might lead him, he 
infaUibly found Arnold not only approving, but positively and 
sincerely valuing for themselves, the results he had arrived at, 
and that approbation and esteem gave a dignity and a worth both 
to himself and his labor. 

— Price (a pupil of Arnold's.) 

ADAPTABILITY. 

It is a good thing for the teacher to be able to understand 
people, to read their character and to put a right construction 
upon their actions. Going among entire strangers, for the time 
being the center of observation and criticism, cordial manners, 
frankness and honesty will win their good-will where the opposite 
of these will create distrust and antagonism. The power to adapt 
one's self to conditions is always the key to success. 

— From an old author. 

HEALTH. 

It is a teacher's obvious duty to be in good health. Petulance 
of temper, a "jaundiced" view of venial facts, forgetfulness of 
one's own youth and youthful failings, impatience in expecting 
rapid mental operations in immature minds, — all these and the like 
faults may spring out of small malaises, but develop into habitual 
ill-temper. We must, therefore, observe the simple rules of 
hygiene in our own persons as we would keep tools of precision in 
perfect order. Over strain and over fatigue are bad for both body 
and mind. One of the first conditions of cheerfulness of soul is 

soundness of body. 

—P. A. Barnett. 

A teacher who enters her school in the morning light-hearted, 
teaches joyously all day, and then, locking all care inside, goes 
away to prepare herself for to-morrow's teaching, is not likely to 
suffer in health because of her occupation, provided, of course, 
she teaches in a properly ventilated room and takes necessary- 
recreation and out-door exercise. 

— Emerson E. White. 

One impulse from a vernal wood 
May teach you more of man. 
Of moral evil and of good, 
Than all the sages can. 

— William Wordsworth. 

Keep out in the open air as much as possible. Upon this I 
place especial emphasis. Live in the open; see God's great 
world; get away from this confinement within walls and these 
books. When in touch with nature you are in tune with the 
infinite, holding silent communion with the Creator. 

—Edward Everett Hale. 



^6 Co7n?non Sense Didactics 

Questions for Examination 

1. State briefly what is said of the first fundamental qualifi- 

cations. 

2. What is said of facts as of the basis of thought? 
J. What constitutes the teacher's reputation? 

4, What is the practical value of sympathy? 
J-. What is intended by adaptability as used in this con- 
nection? 

6. In what sense is Emerson's saying true, "Every day is a 

crisis in a man's life"? 

7. Before you make a contract to teach a school, what circum- 

stances should you investigate with care? 

8. Under what circumstances would it be wise to refuse a 

school which is offered you? 

9. Consider with care what is said about the health of the 

teacher. 
10. What should you avoid as liable to break down your 
strength? 

Suggestions Worth Thinking About 

1. What measures a man's value to society? 

2. Who was Dr. Thomas Arnold? 

3. Is it true in every case that we must proceed from the 

known to the unknown? 

4. Distinguish between Science and Art. 

5. In what does W. H. Payne consider the power of the kinder- 

garten lies? 



• CHAPTER IV 
THINGS ESSENTIAL TO THE TEACHER 
Driving the Stakes 

Every day should add something new to the outfit of the 
teacher. 

—George Howland. 

Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom, and with 
all thy getting, get understanding. 

— Proverbs. 

Power to be conserved must be continually used ; unemployed 
power gradually wastes and dissipates itself, giving no returns. 

— Homer H. Seerley. 

It may be a little matter, but bear in mind that when anything 
is well done it is done forever. 

— Thoreau. 

There can be nothing shaped by man or clothed in outward 
form by him which is not a part of himself made visible. 

—Edward Thring. 

That ingenuity in meeting and pursuing the pupil, that tact for 
the concrete situation, though they are the Alpha and Omega of 
the teacher's art, are things to which psychology cannot help us 
in the least. 

— Willia m Ja mes. 

BEFORE the artisan can work intelligently he must 
have a plan of his work; the more costly the 
materials the more minute must be the specifications 
which guide him. Before he makes his 
plans and computes the cost, the architect P^<^p ^^" 
must know for what purpose the building is 
designed; whether it is to be a church or a factory, an 
office block or a dwelling, and how much money is to 
be expended in its erection. 

57 



^8 Commo7i Sense Didactic s 

The modern farmer, if he is intelligent and progres- 
sive, comprehends something of the relation of crops, 
the value of fertilizers as adapted to different soils, the 
choice of stock, the fruit which will flourish in his 
section of the country. He makes himself acquainted 
with farm machinery; he watches the market and 
notes the best time for selling his crops or stock. He 
knows whether his men are doing honest work, and 
allows nothing to escape his notice which will in any 
way affect his success. In this age of competition he 
is forced to watch many points which did not for a 
moment attract the attention of his father. 

The same principles hold good in the profession of 
teaching. There must be plan, order and system; the 
end must be kept in view from the beginning. Some 
things, however, never change. The trees still grow 
in the forest, although the saw-mill does the work 
once done by the adze and the broad-ax. The 
harvester reaps more grain in an hour than the cradle 
or the sickle could in a week, but the seed must be 
cast, and sunshine and rain, dew and heat left to do 
the work of nature in bringing on the harvest. (See 
page 49-) 

The nature of the child has not changed in the last 

century. Children have the same passions, the same 

will, the same childish desires and impulses 

Child j^Q^ ^g then. However, the environments 

nature r i-r 

of life have changed in a marked 

degree, and child nature demands a different treat- 
ment if we would expect the best results. A knowl- 
edge of children and of child nature in general 
is essential to success; not "the child" about which 
so much is said, but children as a race. Child nature is 
often human nature in its purest form. Children are 



Thi?igs Esseiitial to the TeacJier ^g 

moved by impulses, emotions and desires which they 
have not yet learned to control. Temptations come to 
them suddenly, and they have not the strength to 
resist. Much which we consider ugly and wicked is 
simply the result of an uncontrolled disposition to seek 
what seems to the child to be present pleasure. 

The nervous child cannot sit still; the stubborn boy 
does not see why he should obey; the dull intellect 
fails to comprehend the simplest statement; the mis- 
chievous child is never idle. So on through the entire 
category. The teacher must make allowances for one, 
restrain another, instruct a third, and find employment 
for all. No wonder that some fail; more wonder that 
so many succeed. 

This knowledge will come to the teacher through 
reflection and observation. Books written by those 
who have made this subject a careful study, comparison 
of experience with those of more extended opportu- 
nities for observation than you have had, will be of 
great service to you. But after all, this is one of the 
paths along which the teacher must walk without a 
guide, except as his own insight into the motives and 
impulses characteristic of child nature furnishes a light 
for the feet. 

In the old days a teacher was deemed qualified for 

his work if he could pass a fair scholastic examination 

in the common English branches. In some 

_ - r 4.U J- i.u' -J -1 The teacher 

parts of the country this same idea prevails of to-day 

to-day; nevertheless the thought is rapidly 

gaining ground that knowledge of books is not by any 

means the most essential requisite. 

Schools have changed with the times. The horizon 

has broadened greatly, and every year makes new 

claims upon the teacher. Nor are these demands 



6o Co7nino7i Sense Didactics 

lessened by the fact that the education of the child is 
a continuous process, going on during life, out of 
school as well as in. At home, at school; at work, at 
play; in the street, with his mates or when by himself, 
there can be no cessation, no intermission except in 
his hours of sleep. When you realize this you see at 
once that "to hear his lesso,ns, to make him mind in 
school," is only a very small part of the duty which 
falls upon the shoulders of his teachers. 

The teacher who desires to be respected must 
himself respect the dignity of his office as an instructor 
of children and youth. His daily life must be such 
that it may be safely imitated by those over whom he 
has an influence. Not only must the teacher claim 
that which is rightfully his, but he must so conduct his 
life, in private and as a citizen, that others may 
concede his demands without grudging or hesitation. 

The manly man with all the noble instincts of true 
manhood, the womanly woman with all the pure, 
delicate instincts of true womanhood, — these men and 
women are needed as teachers in our schools, rather 
than the coarse, the boorish, the brutal, the con- 
scienceless, even though such be skilled in all the 
learning of the Egyptians. 

Let us consider, then, for a time the nature of that 

knowledge which, apart from the text-book, is of most 

rj., ^ r- importance to the teacher. An ig-norant 
The art of ^ . . *^ 

wipartzng teacher is out of place m the schoolroom, 
knowledge. }^^^ ^ learned teacher may be just as much 
so. Much depends upon what we understand by the 
word "ignorance." A teacher who has but little 
knowledge of books may teach a fairly good school; a 
teacher with a head full of book learning may make an 
utter failure. 



Thino-s Essential to the Teacher 6i 



^> 



Ignorance is not alone the absence of knowledge, 
but it is also the want of ability to use that which the 
teacher has. A teacher who had been in the university 
once said of a very learned professor: "He knows 
enough. He is full to the brim with knowledge. But 
I learned very little from his instructions; he took 
it for granted that we understood him, and so he did 
not condescend to explain. He shot over our heads 
all the time." This is a severe criticism to make upon 
any teacher. To adapt knowledge to the child mind 
and not to dilute it until it is tasteless is a high art. 

Consider these steps with great care if you wish to 

become an adept in imparting. In the first place your 

knowledge of the subject needs to be 

intensive rather than extensive. You may ^.^^t^ ^f. 

1 -11 1 • 1 1 • 1 • imparti7ig. 

be skilled m the higher mathematics and 

yet not be able to explain the most common opera- 
tions in fractions so that the members of your class 
will clearly comprehend them. Have in your mind 
keen clean-cut ideas of the point you wish to demon- 
strate. Then make a very choice selection of words in 
your definitions and in your statements. Choose, when 
you can, words such as are included in the child's vocab- 
ulary. If forced to use a new and hitherto unused term 
give the pupils plenty of time to get acquainted with it. 
In the next place manifest an interest in having the 
child understand, and when by his recitation he makes 
it evident that he has a clear conception of the lesson 
let him see that you are proud of his success. Don't 
call him a blockhead, or twit him of his dullness. 
That is a species of cruelty to which a good teacher 
never resorts. You cannot impart knowledge to a 
child who is in tears over his failure, or angry because 
of your too sharp chidings. 



62 Co^nmon Se7ise Didactics 

Patience and sympathy are just as necessary in 
imparting instruction as in government. Sometimes it 
is well to leave a point and take something new. 
Weariness is always a hindrance. Then at a later 
period or in the review, resume the matter and often 
you will find that the difficulty hgs disappeared. 

In the last place be sure that you have the attention 
of the entire class. This is a vital point. Without it 
there can be no permanent impression made upon your 
pupils. Inattention on the part of the class is not 
always the teacher's fault; but he is blameworthy if 
he allows it without reproof or correction. 

There is this also to be remembered in your attempts 
to communicate knowledge — one child needs very 
little explanation in his arithmetic; another under- 
stands a principle, or the simplest exercise with the 
greatest difficulty. One is over-fond of history and 
dislikes grammar; another would study literature to 
the exclusion of all other branches. These are all in 
one class. The problem for you to solve is how to 
adapt your instructions to the peculiar wants of each 
pupil. The solution will require on your part perse- 
verance, good temper, patience and a large amount of 
good common sense. Study the child that you may 
know the limitations of his mind as to what he can and 
what he cannot do, and then adapt your language, 
your illustrations and instructions to his capacity. 

The teacher who wishes to become an expert in 

communicating knowledge should be so thoroughly 

,^ , . versed in child nature by observation, by 
Versed in n - ^ • i i • • 

,:Md reflection, by experience that he can antici- 

nature. ^^:^x^ the thoughts of the pupil and avail 

himself of those faculties which seem to be especially 

active in childhood. We all know that cnildren have 



Things Essential to tJie Teacher 6j 

their own way of judging, of feeling, of reasoning; the 
imagination is very active; curiosity is on the alert; 
desire and love, fear and hatred take on real living 
forms in their minds. If you are to communicate 
knowledge of any kind to these little people remem- 
ber your own childhood, and become for the time 
being a little child with them. (See page 34-) 

You cannot create intellect, nor can you furnish 
brain, but you can open the door of growth, you can 
stimulate, you can encourage and hopefully direct the 
feeble effort to improve. Rest content when you are 
sure that you have done your whole duty. The dull 
boy may not claim all your time, but he is entitled to 
your largest sympathy. A late writer says: "There 
is that born in the child which determines his predilec- 
tion, and the great teacher is he who early discovers 
the innate germ and gives it opportunity for expres- 
sion. Soul is not the product of the school." 

Loyalty is a matter which deserves more considera- 
tion than it usually receives. For the time being you are 
to become an integral part of the system of 
schools in the city or township with which ^^ ^' 

your school is connected. There should be always on 
your part a hearty compliance with standard rules and 
regulations made by those who have charge of the 
school. If these regulations are so burdensome as to 
restrict your usefulness you can resign, but there 
should never be anything like rebellion. Those who 
as directors or superintendent are placed over you are 
entitled to a hearty support, and the teacher falls far 
short of her duty who does not cheerfully render it. 
Whenever anything like friction, suspicion, antag- 
onism or even indifference exists, the interest of the 
school must suffer. At times teachers regard teachers* 



6^ Commote Sense Didactics 

meetings and associations as useless, and express 
themselves as unwilling to attend. Many times they 
fail to attend without an}^ good excuse. This is not a 
spirit of loyalty to the best interests of the school. 
The place assigned you on the program should be 
cheerfully accepted and filled to the best of your 
ability. 

In nearly every instance the county superintendent 
is honestly working for the interests of the teachers of 
his county. He ought to have their loyal support. 
He is not above criticism, neither are you. Your 
advice and your experience may be a great help to 
him, and he is in a position to be of real service to you. 
Your influence in assisting him to introduce libraries, 
to push the interests of the reading circle, in maintain- 
ing township meetings, if strongly exerted, will be 
appreciated by him if he is a worthy officer. All this 
applies equally well to teachers in city schools. 
Loyalty is fast coming to be considered as a chief 
essential to successful work in any system of schools. 
(See page 50.) 

In another place I shall have something to say of the 
power of adaptability to environment. But in an 
r, 7 .- entirely different sense one of the essen- 

to the tials of success is the ability to get along 

public. smoothly with the public. In this there is 

an opportunity for the exercise of both tact and 
common sense. Little neighborhood quarrels should 
not concern the teacher of the district school. Per- 
sonal animosities between neighbors should be ignored, 
and absolute friendliness maintained with all parties. 
Do not attempt to please everybody, but do not need- 
lessly offend any one. 

Complaints which reach your ears may seem to you 



Things Esse?itial to the Teacher 6$ 

frivolous, but they do not seem so to those who make 
them. Give those who come to you with them 
respectful attention and hear patiently what they have 
to say. 

Give no attention to idle rumors which may reach 
your ears, and lose no sleep on account of them. Be 
courteous to those even who are not your friends, if 
such there are in the district, and make them welcome 
to the school. Your chief business is to give the 
people the benefits of the best school possible, and to 
this all your energies should be bent. When you talk 
of the school say "our school," not "my school," and 
thus make the public feel that the people have a pro- 
prietary interest in all that concerns its welfare. 

A disposition to maintain your own dignity while 
you manifest a friendly spirit toward any one with 
whom you come in contact will make your position as 
teacher much more influential and much pleasanter. 

Do not allow your pupils to come to you with tales 
of what they hear, or of what their parents say of you 
or your school. Never on any occasion let ^ 
the children hear you speak disrespectfully avoiding 
or disparagingly of their parents, no matter friction. 
how unreasonable they may be or how low their con- 
dition in life. The natural love and regard of the child 
for the parent should be respected and encouraged by 
you. 

Without being time-serving, or timorous, or fawning, 
by observing the dictates of common sense and by 
good judgment you can avoid much of the friction 
with the public which sometimes displaces the teacher 
from her position and perhaps greatly injures her 
reputation. 



66 Commo?i Se?ise Didactics 

The wise teacher recognizes the fact that every 
school has its own individuality. What can be accom- 
Tke study P^^^hed in one school and with one class of 
of envirofi- pupils is not the measure of what can be 
^^^^^' accomplished in another district. This is 

a kind of knowledge which but few instructors possess 
— a knowledge of conditions and environments. It 
opens a field calling for much patient thought on the 
part of the teacher. The question is not what would I 
like to do for this child, but what may I reasonably 
hope to do under all circumstances by which I find him 
surrounded, as home conditions and influences, the 
work done by previous teachers, and the intellectual 
and moral atmosphere which seems to pervade the 
community. When you have answered this question 
conscientiously and have fully determined it in your 
mind, then you can free yourself from all worry and 
anxiety and be at liberty to do your work for each pupil, 
taking him as God has made him. 

The most valuable knowledge which can come to 
any one is the knowledge of one's self, the power to 
Self knotvt- ^"'^^sure one's own ability and to under- 
edge and stand the boundaries of personal limita- 
setf trust. ti^^^3_ 

The tendency in a man to underrate his powers, a 
disposition to refrain from action for fear of making a 
mistake — not actual cowardice, but a shrinking from a 
responsibility — is a sign of weakness in his character. 
The same is true in the character of the teacher. That 
nervous tension which comes from the exercise of a 
strong will power, that determination "to win out," 
which is born of a brave heart, no matter how great 
the difficulty or how severe the struggle, will rally all 
the powers of the intellect, body and soul to his aid, 



T hi figs Esse?iiial to the Teacher dy 

and bring him off victorious in the end. "I can 
because I iviW is a good motto for the timid or dis- 
heartened teacher. In an old book this is summed up 
thus: "I am; I can; I ought; I ivill.'' 

While the teacher should not trust to native instinct 
or blind impulse in dealing with children, there is such 

a thing as intuition, or intuitive judgment, 

, . , . ^ -J 1 • Intuition. 

which sometimes comes to our aid and is 

almost infallible. An English author speaking of 
intuitions says: "They present themselves spontane- 
ously to the mind with irresistible evidence. " There 
is not space to discuss this matter, but I believe that 
the power to judge by intuition as to the best course to 
be pursued is frequently an acquired habit w^hich is 
cultivated by the exercise of observation, reason and 
judgment joined to thoughtful, persistent study of 
children in the early stages of development. 

A general acquaintance with what the world is doing 
also is essential to the teacher. More than ever before 
it is his duty to prepare pupils for a broad j^ , ,^ 
citizenship. The wgrld is coming together, of the 
Knowledge is greatly multiplied. The '^o^^^- 
future citizen must be a cosmopolitan, ready for his 
work in whatever civilization his lot may be cast. The 
world of the present is an immense telegraphic sys- 
tem, the wires of which run into the cottages of the 
poor as well as the mansions of the rich. Every man 
to-day is able to read from the sounds as they come in 
from all lands the doings and sayings of the entire world. 

If the pupil is to be of any use to his generation he 
must, when he leaves his studies, find himself possessed 
of a spirit of growth and enterprise commensurate Avith 
the times. That smattering of a few branches which 



68 Co?nmo?i Se?ise Didactics 

formerly sufficed is utterly insufficient now for the 
teacher who is aspiring to do good work. 

There should always be present with the teacher a 

comprehension of the avenues of success which seem to 

be most promising to the youth. The boy 

'^f^TcZT '^^^'^ "^^^'^^ ^^^^"^^ fi^ h^"^ ^" a" especial 
way for some vocation should be encour- 
aged, and his teacher should be able to point out to 
him the advantages which may come to him from 
following his natural bent. More than that the disad- 
vantages and the difficulties which may meet him 
should not be concealed. The teacher should be a 
wise adviser — wise because he speaks from his wider 
knowledge. Pupils admire and trust the teacher whose 
understanding embraces something of that practical 
life into which they expect to enter when school days 
are over. 

The time has gone by when the teacher can say: 
"It is nothing to me what the child is to do after he 
leaves school." The great business of the school is so 
to shape the inclinations, the ambition, the moral 
purposes of the child that the change from school to 
active life shall be only a step leading to a higher 
plane of living. 

It is well to instruct children as to their duties, but 
it is equally well to inform them of their rights. This 
is a part of the work which a properly 
^ndrights organized school should do. There are 
certain duties which have a claim upon the 
good citizen, — duties to the state, to the family, to 
those with whom he associates in business, but in turn 
the citizen may claim his rights, and even insist upon ' 
them because they are lawfully his. 

Search, in The Ideal School, says: 'The child has an 



Thifigs E ss ential to the Teacher 6g 

inalienable right to be a child; to be understood and 
appreciated; to joyous play, freedom in movements, 
adequate sleep, nourishing food, companionable pets, 
and, within certain limits, self-chosen friends; to an 
acquaintance with Nature; to capable leadership, and to 
opportunity for initiative and unrestraining progress." 
The same state of affairs exists in all schools. As his 
duty you may exact from every pupil obedience, 
respect, attention to his studies, but in turn he has cer- 
tain definite privileges which he may expect from his 
teacher. Impartiality, courtesy, justice, kindness, 
respect for his feelings — upon these the pupil may 
insist as legitimately his. The teacher who mimicked 
the lame boy and held his misfortune up as a matter of 
ridicule drove him from school and almost ruined his 
life. Many a guilty prisoner in the penitentiary has 
less to answer for than she has through her cruel 
thoughtlessness. 

A story is told of an English schoolmaster who made 
an invariable rule that the pupil should hold his book 
in his right hand. One day he noticed that a new boy 
held his book in )iis left hand. The master said, in 
commanding tones, "Books in the right hand." Still 
the one boy made no pretense of changing. Supposing 
it was a case of obstinacy the master brought his cane 
down heavily upon the shoulders of the boy. In an 
instant up came the boy's right arm with only a 
shrivelled stump in the place of a hand. For a 
moment the room was still as death. Then the master 
laid his book upon the desk, and placing his arm 
around the boy asked pardon, while the tears ran 
down his cheeks. Then turning to the class he begged 
their pardon also for his most grievous fault. 

In his instructions to his pupils the teacher must 



yo CoTnmon Se^ise Didactic s 

know what discriminations to make between the duties 

and the rights of every one, so that he may set them 

forth plainly and forcibly. This is part, 

Wisedis- ^^^ ^ necessary part, of what we often 
crumiiation. . , , , 

term a practical education. It cannot be 

learned from books, neither can it be set forth in ser- 
mons or prosy talks. By proper and careful regard to 
the rights and the duties of each, an impression can be 
made which the pupils will retain through a long, 
active life. 

As the population of the country increases, especially 
in view of the tendency of men to gather in cities and 
towns, it becomes of the utmost importance that the 
youth when he comes to his citizenship should be as 
jealous of his neighbor's rights as of his own if he is to 
be a citizen leading a quiet life in a respectable neigh- 
borhood. Only in this way can we engender through 
our schools that spirit of helpfulness which is sadly 
wanting in the pushing, hustling life of to-day. 

There is more power in a knowledge of books than 

there is in book knowledge as generally estimated. It 

is not necessary that a teacher should be an 

General adept in literature, but he should have a 
knowledge. ^ ' 

somewhat complete knowledge of authors 

and their works. Without this he must at times either 
be ashamed of his ignorance, or cover it up by some 
general and often misleading statement. It adds very 
greatly to the interest which a class exhibits in a 
certain production to know the author's name, some- 
thing of his life and what else has come from his 
pen. 

I would not lay upon your shoulders a burden in 
addition to what you already carry. But the news- 
papers and public journals as well as the prominent 



Thi?igs Esse?itial to the Teacher 71 

magazines contain items of news and information of 
improvements in the arts and sciences which should 
come under the teacher's notice. The reading of 
them seems to be essential if the school is to be kept 
in touch with the world's progress. Travels and 
biography and history must be gathered from the 
latest sources in order to have them fresh and inter- 
esting. The world moves so rapidly, the progress of 
events is so sharp and incessant that the teacher is 
sometimes at his wits' ends to keep up with the pro- 
cession. 

In the family circle a question arose as to building 
railroads in Siberia. The father, with his limited 
knowledge, was positive it could not be done. An 
older sister was equally positive that while visiting a 
friend she had read an account of it in some paper. 
Finally the little boy just entering the grammar grade 
of the village school said: "I'll ask my teacher 
to-morrow. You bet she'll know. " At noon he came 
home in triumph. "I told you she would know. She 
has promised to lend me a magazine that tells lots 
about it." 

The teacher is not expected to know everything, but 
he ought to know where certain items of useful knowl- 
edge can be found, and if, as this teacher The teacher 
did, he can furnish it to the pupil and to fJ/J.^Z'^^f 
the family he does a good work. kuowtedge. 

Something should be said here of educational jour- 
nals. They contain that professional knowledge with- 
out which the teacher cannot well measure himself by 
what others are doing. In order to keep fully up with 
the times the teacher should be familiar with one or 
more good educational journals suited to the special 
grades in which he is engaged. 



y2 Cofninon Sense Didactics 

One or more professional works should be owned 
and carefully read by the teacher. He cannot read 
everything which comes from the educational press, 
and he ought not to attempt it, but something must be 
added to his store of professional knowledge from year 
to year or he will fall into the ruts and grow old before 
his time. 

One of the worst things than can happen to a 
teacher is to drop behind in the march of educational 
progress. Stunted in his intellectual and professional 
growth he suddenly finds himself useless when he 
ought to be most useful; set aside as of no worth at a 
time of life when he ought to be retained for his valu- 
able services. 

Many schools are very deficient in reference books, 
and even when the pupils have access to them the vol- 
^ ., umes often give only the merest outlines 

prepara- which prove unsatisfactory because of their 
tion. meagerness. The information which comes 

warm from the heart of the enthusiastic teacher kindles 
a corresponding glow in the heart of the pupil. Book 
knowledge cannot do this unless the instructor is able 
to supplement it by wider knowledge, drawn from all 
the sources at his command. The teacher should have 
a thorough acquaintance with the subject-matter con- 
tained in the text-books used in the schools. He 
should be familiar not only with the matter but with 
the. methods of presentation adopted by the author. 
The text-book is the pupil's guide, whom he trusts and 
upon whose statements he depends. It is unwise in 
the teacher to weaken the pupil's confidence in the 
book. 

He should, however, have other resources. Page 
says he should be so familiar with the lesson that even 



Things Esse7itial to the Teacher ^j 

if every text-book were destroyed he could still 
conduct the recitation successfully. 

The teacher who knows nothing more than what the 
text-book contains, and knows that well, can be 
endured, although he is not desirable; but the teacher 
who knows everything else except the text-book in 
use and the methods adopted by the author, cannot by 
any possible means do good work, and ought not to be 
endured more than a single month. It will take 
about that length of time to find some one to take his 
place. 

There are other things which might be included here. 
Some of them are found in the chapter on the Hygiene 
of the School, others in the chapter on Moral Instruc- 
tion. Enough points, however, have been mentioned 
to induce the teacher to be careful in 

Driving the Stakes. 
Quotations Worth Reading 

child na ture. 

For the teacher to know his subjects well from an examination 
point of view is one thing; to know them in a form suitable for 
presentation to his scholars is another; while, to be acquainted 
with the best methods of communicating the knowledge he pos- 
sesses — the principles which should gov.ern his teaching, the 
various devices he should make! use of and the share of the work 
he should exact from his pupils, — is still a third. 

—Joseph Landon. 

Children have their own characteristic ways of feeling, of 
regarding things, of judging as to truth and so forth. And 
although the adult observer of children has himself been a child, 
he is unable, except in rare cases, to recall his own childish expe- 
riences with any distinctness. How many of us are reall}- able to 
recollect the wonderings, the terrors, the grotesque fancies of our 
first years? And then children are apt to be misunderstood 
because they have to use our medium of speech and often fail to 
seize its exact meaning. 

—James Sully, 



y4 Co mm 71 Sense Didactics 

KNOWLEDGE OF SELh. 

It is by faithfully performing the tasks assigned him in the 
studies of his course that the student trains himself thus to pene- 
trate, resolve, combine and develop. In a mind so disciplined its 
possessor has an instrument of almost universal potency. This is 
the general outfit, to be supplemented by such special preparation 
as may be suited to each one's special work in life. The liberal 
training has already given fitness to master the problem in any 
one of the many waiting spheres, — law, medicine, theology, 
sociology or science. 

—Selected. 

And there at the threshold, like a fairy princess, should stand 
the sympathetic teacher, with smiling welcome to receive him, to 
crown his hopes with her sweet confidence and kindly care, and 
assign him his seat, the throne of his childish ambition, and his 
desk, the banqueting-table of his curious and wondering heart. 

— George Howland, 
INTUITION. 

Intuitions are beliefs and judgments which present themselves 
spontaneously to the mind with irresistible evidence, but without 
the assistance of memory or reflection. 

— Dexter and Garlick. 

The soul is also endowed with the power to know directly and 
immediately the necessary relations of objects. This intellectual 
power is called intuition. 

— Emerson E. White. 

Hegel does not hesitate to expressly declare that ''pedagogics 
is the art of making men moral," and to this he adds that 
theoretically "It regards man as natural, and shows the way of 
bringing about his regeneration, the way of transforming his first 
nature into a second nature, so that the latter shall attain the form 
of habit within him." 

—Selected. 
KNOWLEDGE OF THE WORLD. 

Careless teachers do most of their proper mischief because they 
have not acquired the scrupulous habit of intellectual truthful- 
ness. The lack of it is not felt by themselves; they would be 
indignant if we tried to bring it home to them. But from the want 
of logic and from a touching belief in the performance of "experi- 
ments" as "science," the science lessons in particular are often 
full of reckless deceptions. 



-p. A. Burnett. 



MISCELLA NEO US. 

In all our schools there is too strong a tendency to hold up a 
false standard of success before the pupils. The things which 
make for true manhood and true womanhood, which will con- 



Tilings E ss ential to the Teaclier 75 

tribute to the usefulness of the individual as a member of society, 
are lost sight of in the iierce ambition to obtain the mark neces- 
sary for promotion to the next higher class. 

— lozva School Report. 

The circle of knowledge, through which every man in his own 
place becomes blessed, begins immediately around him, from his 
own being, and from his closest relations. It extends from this 
beginning and at ever}- increase must have reference to truth, 
that central point of all blessed powers. 

—Pestalozzi. 

There must be substituted for our present methods of examin- 
ing teachers a careful inquiry into character, intellectual capacity, 
general culture, and all that goes to the making of a teacher, 
including a knowledge of pedagogic theory and practice as laid 
down in the literature of the profession. Scholarship should be 
insisted upon, but good judgment must be held as important as 
geography, gumption as necessary as grammar. Change our 
practice so as to make these larger demands upon our teachers, 
our law so as to provide a rational method of licensing them, and 
both law and practice so as to exempt them from the unnecessary 
annoyance of never-ending reexaminations every time the moon 
changes, a county line is crossed, or the institute fund is low, and 
we shall at once find a reasonable supply of teachers with as much 
preparation as the profits of teaching a country school will 
warrant. 

— A. B. Warner. 

But remember — and let me say it once for all — that my aim is 
not so much to give definite instruction as to put the reader into 
such ways and starts of thought as shall make him eager to 
instruct himself. 

—Donald Grant Mitchell. 

The best thing in this world is work, and the best work in the 
world is for the children. It is the seed and the soil and the 
planting that we must look after together with watchfulness of 
the growing plants. What the harvest shall be we know not. 
We may never know and w^e need not know. The influence of a 
great teacher may reach — must reach — through all the years. 
And the great teacher, whether in the country school or the uni- 
versity, is the one whose work is limited only by his possibilities — 
not for self, but for children. 

— Orville T. Bright. 

Questions for Examination 

/. Which of the three points mentioned in quotation i from 

Landon is the most important? 
2. In what particulars does child nature never change? 
J. What knowledge apart from that contained in text-books is 

important to the teacher? 



^6 Co mm on Sense Didactics 

4. Why is it important for the teacher to have a knowledge of 

himself ? 

5. Answer the same question in regard to child nature. 

6. What do you understand by mtuitio7i? 

7. Name some of the rights of children. 

8. Tell the story of the English schoohnaster and draw an 

inference from it. * 

9. Tell the story of the railroad in Siberia, and draw the infer- 

ence from it. 
70. The relation of the teacher to the text-books used by the 
pupils. 

Suggestions Worth Thinking About 

7. If you have any book at hand study the subject of intuitions. 
2. Purchase one good book, not too difficult, which treats of 

elementary psychology, and read it with pencil in hand, 
J. Keep a sound, practical treatise on school management 

where you can consult it occasionally. 
4. Subscribe for not more than two educational journals, and 
as you read discriminate between what is practical and 

what is worthless. 
J. Read for your own advancement some book not strictly 

professional. 



CHAPTER V 

THE CHILD 

A Little Child Shall Lead Them 

The supreme object of the child's education is the child himself. 

—Selected. 

Observation is the absolute basis of all knowledge. 

—Pestalozzi. 

The soul is endowed with the power to know directly present 
material objects. This power is called perceptioJi, and since 
material objects are perceived by means of special senses it may 
be called sense-perception. 

^Emerson E. White. 

What a man would discover about an object by reflection and 
reason, the child finds out through his senses. 

—A . R. Taylor. 

The habit of attention is an essential part of observation. 
Therefore it must be acquired before progress in intellectual 
culture can be made. 

— N. A. Calkins. 

If we do not save the children, who will? 

— Francis W. Parker. 

THE carpenter or the cabinet-maker must know 
the peculiar qualities of the different kinds of 
wood upon which he works. By the sense of touch he 
can distinguish the hemlock from the oak, Dealino- 
the maple from the pine, the birch from ivith the 
the mahogany. A large part of his skill ''^«^^''^■^^• 
consists in knowing how to get the best results possible 
from the material at his disposal. He knows that pine 
cannot be made to take the polish of mahogany, nor 
the hemlock the beauty and strength of the hard 
maple. Yet each if skillfully treated has its use and 

77 



yS C m 711 on Sense Didactics 

purpose. In his work he is guided by his knowledge 
of the qualities which the tree has, as it were by 
inheritance, in common with all its race. 

To obtain the best results possible out of the child 
as God made him, the teacher must deal with him in 
much th e s am e way. That is skill; that will insure success. 
The infinite variety that exists in the minds of children 
is beyond our comprehension, and yet we scarcely give 
it earnest thought. We group them in grades and 
classes and give them set lessons from their books; we 
praise them or blame them with but little if any dis- 
crimination, and we dismiss them at four o'clock 
thinking our work is done. 

For too many of us it is done. The dignity, the 
possibilities of childhood, the ideal to which the child 
may attain under good teaching, the strength of char- 
acter which is the combined product of motive and 
principle, all are eclipsed by the common-place and 
practical which have no fruition in the hereafter and 
afford no conception of that soulful instruction which 
is due an immortal life. 

"What is the child worth in the light of eternity?'* 
should confront the teacher at every stage of his work. 
The worth This truth has been recognized by thought- 
of the child, ful men everywhere. It ought to stimulate 
the teacher to the greatest possible efforts in behalf of 
every child under his care. Thackeray recognized it 
when he wrote: "The death of a little child occasions 
such a passion of grief and frantic tears as your end 
will never inspire. " Emerson also wrote: "Whoever 
lays his hand upon the head of a little child lays it 
also upon the mother's heart." Out of the fullness of 
his soul Dickens wrote of Little Nell and wept real 
tears at her death. 



The Child yg 

Charles F. Seward, in discussing "Spiritual Emanci- 
pation," writes: "The most important work of this 
generation is not the development and utilization of 
electricity and other forces for material ends. Its 
special task is to study, comprehend and apply the 
principle of unity — the unity of law, of truth and of 
life." So the most important work in our schools is 
not to develop and cultivate the intellectual faculties 
for the purpose of enabling the child to get on in the 
world. Its special task is to bring out those powers of 
the child which will make him at maturity a strong 
influence among his fellow men with whom he daily 
associates. Whether he be a blacksmith or a lawyer, 
a farmer or a teacher, whatever his vocation, this prin- 
ciple of unity — "the unity of law, of truth and of life" 
— must be the foundation upon which his character 
rests. 

A man of great strength, one whom we sometimes 
term a strong chara>-ter, has his whole soul buttressed 
upon the threefold basis of right purpose, right think- 
ing and right living. Thus he falls into line with the 
civilization of his ,day. He becomes a tower of 
strength to his friends, an influence for good in his 
neighborhood, a power in every effort to make life 
better and existence more desirable. 

It is not usually possible for the common school 
teacher to enter upon an extended course of child 
study. The most which you can do under ^ ,^. 
the limitations which surround you is to the chil- 
observe children carefully, in the light of <^^'<^n. 
experience and in view of the information at your dis- 
posal. Native instinct, good common sense should be 
called continually to your aid. "I never thought of 
that," is no excuse for having neglected important 



8o Co mm 71 Se?ise Didactics 

considerations which affect the well being of the child. 
If you are in "dead earnest," if your soul is in your 
work, no mortification can be as great to you as to 
realize that you have made a mistake through want of 
thought and attention to things which are now as 
evident to you as the light of day. (See page 66.) 

School teaching is not entirely different from other 
vocations. The horse goes lame because a heedless 
blacksmith drives a nail into the quick of the hoof. 
The engine breaks because a careless machinist 
neglected to test the nut which held a rod in its place. 
The roof leaks because a thoughtless carpenter laid 
the shingles in a hurry. A child goes wrong physi- 
cally, mentally, or morally, because an indifferent or 
ignorant teacher failed to note a marked peculiarity, 
or charged it up to that innate wickedness which he 
thought could be best corrected by stern repression or 
by punishment of some kind. 

Children are living, sentient flesh and blood; they 
have bodies to be cared for and trained, minds to 
learn and expand, hearts to love or hate, souls to 
aspire. They read character as a book; they are quick 
to respond; they meet distrust with distrust; they greet 
confidence with confidence; they measure out hate for 
hate and love for love. Of all time in a child's life, 
that spent in school is the most precious. No matter 
how propitious the summer weather for growth, or how 
favorable the autumn for reaping, if the springtime is 
wasted there will be no harvest to gather. 

It is a maxim among teachers: "Never do for a 
child that which he ought to do for himself." But the 
reverse is also true: "Never leave a child to do for 
himself that which you ought to do for him." The 
child when he comes to school is entitled to some- 



The Child 8i 

l-.hing. The teacher is placed there and paid to do 
something; he is placed in the schoolroom for some 
purpose. Catalogue the usual requirements '^ what of 
for a teacher's certificate and you will find the chil- 
them to be about as follows: A little drenV 
knowledge of certain branches, which are called funda- 
mental; a fairly moral character; ability to compel 
pupils to learn their lessons and to enforce obedience. 
And there are thousands of teachers in the land whose 
requirements are hardly up to this standard. 

Of what use to you or to me, or to any one, are facts 
in history, truths of science, poetical fancies, beautiful 
landscapes, pictures, painting, music, except as we are 
able to assimilate them so that they become an actual 
part of the living world within us. 

You remember that when the Pharisees questioned 
him that aforetime was blind concerning Christ he 
answered: "Whether he be a sinner or no I know 
not. One thing I know that whereas I was blind now 
I see." The one was a speculative, the other a per- 
sonal experience, and no man could take it from him. 
Just so the ideal teacher has a character which is some- 
thing more than a bundle of cold negations; it is 
positive, bold, living, impressing itself in every way, 
consciously and unconsciously, upon the habits of the 
pupils under his care. 

In matters of discipline and in methods of instruc- 
tion the ideal teacher is continually asking himself, 
"What of the children?" Unless you can take that 
spirit into the schoolroom your success will be only 
that of the paid hireling. It is an honorable motive to 
teach for the pay it brings you. But there is some- 
thing higher and more inspiring than that which leads 
the teacher to comprehend the worth of the child; 

6 



82 Co mm 71 Seiise Didactics 

which enables him to discern in every pupil that divine 
spark which rags cannot cover, which squalor cannot 
conceal, and which poverty cannot quench. 

In the first place the physical condition of the child 
will demand your attention. Here the formation of 
p^ ^^., ^ habits is of prime importance — habits of 
needs of sitting at the desk, of standing in the class, 
the child. q£ talking, of entering or leaving the 
room. Especially should no habit be formed which is 
peculiar to the school and which must be broken up 
at home because awkward and disagreeable. For 
instance, the child should not be taught to walk on 
tiptoe in order to avoid a noise, or always to raise the 
hand before asking a question. Such requirements if 
persisted in render the child ridiculous at home. 

It is part of your business, so far as possible, to see 
that the children are made comfortable while at 
school. They are naturally restless, and long con- 
tinued restraint is irksome. A frequent change of 
posture, a march round the room, a little recess of five 
minutes during which they may talk or visit with each 
other, a short exercise in gymnastics to start the blood, 
— all are available and at times most useful. 

Children should be trained to do things in a quiet 
way; gentleness of manner and behavior should be 
insisted upon by the teacher, but the boundless activ- 
ities of the child will have their way once in a while as 
they ought to have. His mind is also a curiosity 
which the live teacher may well study. Quick says: 
"The child's mind is a delightful thing in the ideal, 
but practically it is a nuisance. It goes on wondering 
who is the biggest man in the world, etc., etc. It 
never seems to have any grist to grind and goes on 
turning and turning as if in a hurricane and with no 



The Child 83 

sense results.' In the old-fashioned courses of study 
there were frequently found the words: "Morals and 
manners as before." The direction needs to be heeded 
in our modern curriculum. 

What is it to know a child? You say, "I think I know 
that boy thoroughly." Now what do you know about 
him? Catalogue your knowledge and it 
will be something'like this: I know that fj^'^^^^ii 
he obeys me because he fears scolding or 
whipping; he likes his arithmetic but he hates 
grammar; he is the first boy out when playtime comes, 
and the last boy in when the bell rings. I know that 
he is full of fun and mischief. If there is any disturb- 
ance in his part of the room I at once single him out 
as the author of it. The other day I caught him with 
a knife whittling in schooltime a shingle which he 
brought in under his jacket. I used the shingle for a 
different purpose from what he intended. I know him 
and know how to handle him. 

But there are some things which you do not know, 
and regarding which perhaps you do not care. Do 
you know that he 'dislikes you heartily because you 
have no sympathy with him and blame him for what 
he cannot help without doing violence to his boyhood? 
What do you know of his real nature? Is he brave, 
generous-hearted, helpful to his mother, affectionate 
toward his brothers and sisters? What do you know 
of his home surroundings, and of the influences which 
may be warping his young life out of all shape and 
symmetry? Do you know what he reads, where he 
spends his evenings, who are his boon companions? 
Do you ever stop to seek for the motives which 
prompt his actions? Have you ever attempted to look 
inside the boy and study the ideal which is gradually 



84 Co mm 71 Se?ise Didactics 

though unconsciously forming itself in his mind and in 
accordance with which he will surely shape his future 
character? 

I have enumerated but few things which are neces- 
sary in order to know this one boy. He is a type of 
every child in your school. If you have forty pupils 
you have forty different lessons to learn. It is a great 
deal to know which children are nervous, which are 
partially deaf or nearsighted, and in all possible ways 
to repair or in some degree to remedy the defect. 
This, however, is not the greatest study of the child. 
(See page 62.) 

You have perhaps noticed at different times the 
windows of a great cathedral. You walk about the 
Study of o'Jtside; they are dull and in no way attract- 
the hiner ive. But when you go inside and stand 
^{/^- upon the steps of the chancel, then the skill 

of the artist reveals itself. Painted in gorgeous colors 
by the light of the sun you behold the images of saints, 
the cross and the crown, the crucifixion and the resur- 
rection, holy text and loving remembrances of departed 
friends. So you know the boy's character only when 
you stand within, near his heart, and study from the 
boy's standpoint the pictures which life paints. In 
this spirit Whittle r wrote The Barefoot Boy : 

Blessings on thee, little man, 
Barefoot boy with cheek of tan ; 
With thy turned up pantaloons, 
And thy merry whistled tunes ; 
"With thy red lips, redder still 
Kissed by strawberries on the hill ; 
With the sunshine on thy face, 
Through thy torn brim's jaunty grace; 
From my heart I give thee joy : 
/ was 07ice a barefoot boy. 



The Child 83 

Sometimes it seems to me that to direct the active 
mind of childhood into right channels of thought, to 
form correct motives which lead to honest lives, to im- 
plant germs of industry, purity and sobriety which may 
spring up into everlasting life, to aid the child in his 
efforts to attain his ideal of greatness and usefulness, 
is more of a miracle than it would be to unstop the 
ears of the deaf or to unlock the tongue of the dumb. 
Herein is the real study of childhood. 

The child when he first comes to school has a large 
amount of knowledge which he has gained partly 
through his experience and partly through Experience 
observation. What he has learned through and obser- 
experience he remembers, and by it his '^^^^<^^^- 
actions are largely guided. It is a hard school even 
for little folks, but its lessons make a deep impression. 

What the child has learned through observation has 
come to him by the use of his senses. Dr. Harris 
calls these senses the five windows of the^soul. They 
are the gateways through which all knowledge of the 
outside world enters his mind. It is your work to aid 
nature in developing the senses. Something which the 
child sees awakens his curiosity. He turns it over in 
his mind; he asks questions about it; and he is all 
eagerness to know "Why, and wherefore, and what 
for," until he is satisfied that he knows it all. You 
cannot see for him, he must see for himself, and if you 
direct him rightly this is the greatest possible satisfac- 
tion to him. 

Perhaps the keenest enjoyment that comes to the 
child is when, through the exercise of his senses, he 
has made a discovery for himself. By all means give 
him the benefit of this pleasure whenever you can. I 
fear that in many schools we are unduly hastening that 



S6 Co mm 71 Se7ise Didactics 

which nature intended should be a slow process. The 
teacher, impatient of results, is either doing the work 
for the child, or else exacting from him a class of 
work which tends to overtax the growing brain. The 
result in either case is equally disastrous. 

While regular exercises intended to train the senses 
are good, these should not preclude the necessity of 
making this matter a point in every exercise. Lessons 
should be illustrated by what the pupils have gathered 
for themselves, what they have seen and heard on 
their way to and from school, in the shop, on the farm, 
by the wayside, and the child should be encouraged to 
talk of these things before the class or the school. 

Jackman, in Nature Study, says: "The earliest im- 
pulses toward goodness that come to children from 
nature probably arise from their sincere love of the 
beautiful. What they perceive as surpassing loveli- 
ness in the flowers and in the song of birds, they trans- 
late as goodness in terms of their own lives." This is 
one source of moral growth. 

Observation is the basis of the thinking process. To 
observe closely and accurately is to think clearly and 
well. Spurzheim says that "man arrives at truth by 
letting himself down to simple observation and induc- 
tion." 

In estimating the general ability of the teacher it is 

a matter of grave importance to ascertain whether his 

senses have been well trained. It is neces- 

Senses of ^^^^ f^j. ^^ hig-hest success that each sense 

1/16 t6ClCh€V . 

should be ready to meet any demands 
made upon it in daily schoolroom work. The same 
tests that are applied to children to ascertain which, if 
any, sense is defective, should be applied to every can- 
didate for a teacher's position. We are just awakening 



The Child 87 

to a full realization of the importance of sense training. 
It is as necessary to test the sense of sight or hearing 
in the candidate as it is to test his knowledge of 
arithmetic. 

It is certain that the teacher who has been well 
trained in this respect will be more apt to appreciate 
the importance of cultivating the senses and to devise 
ways for developing sense-perception in the child. 
Its importance cannot be overestimated in any grade 
of school work. 

The order of sense development is worthy of consid- 
eration. Touch, sight, hearing, taste, smell, is the 
order given in the books, yet this order is not invari- 
able, nor ought we to develop one sense to the 
exclusion of all others. The desirable end is such a 
development that each sense may be an aid to all the 
others. Occasionally it is necessary to bring each 
sense into use, or in other words to put each sense in 
turn upon the witness stand, to enable the individual 
to obtain a clear conception of the object under exam- 
ination. 

Children differ vjsry greatly in the natural keenness 
of their perceptive faculties. One child notices every 
peculiarity of dress or the color of the eyes and hair. 
One will observe many points which entirely escape 
the notice of a companion. The same is true of other 
senses. In every school of twenty pupils are some 
who are defective in sight, or in hearing, or in some 
one sense. These children need your especial care 
and attention. Before you blame a child for not 
seeing be sure that he can see; before you blame him 
for not hearing be sure that he can hear. Test in 
some way the senses of the deficient child and thus you 
may be able to give him intelligent sense-training. 



88 Com?no?i Seiisc Didactic s 

In training the senses we must be careful not to 
arrest the child's mental development. Thus Dr. 
Harris shows how sense-perception, if too highly culti- 
vated, may prove detrimental to some higher faculty — 
as to memory. We must not keep the pupil too long 
on crutches. There comes a time when he must 
begin to deal with the abstract as well as the concrete. 
The observing teacher watches for this period, and 
changes the tone of instruction accordingly. The 
truth remains, however, that to the «.nild who has been 
taught to observe, whose senses have been carefully 
trained, the book of nature opens a thousand pages 
upon every one of which there is a lesson of beauty, of 
joy, of life itself. 

While it is not expected that any teacher will be an 

expert in psychology, it is well for her to know the 

meaning of a few psychological terms. 

Psychologi- Without some such knowledge it is impos- 
cal terms . . 

sible for the progressive teacher to under- 
stand many articles in educational journals which are 
worth reading; she also is liable not to grasp the full 
meaning of lectures which she hears at educational 
institutes and associations. In the following paragraphs 
are included those most commonly used in child study, 
and they should be carefully read and studied. If you 
have access to an elementary psychology it will come 
in use here as a reference book. Every teacher 
should own one and read it. 

Calkins says that ''Sensations are those brief influ- 
ences or impressions which external objects produce 
upon the mind through the special bodily organs of 
sense." Sensation is very closely allied to perception. 
I place my hand upon a piece of ice. Through my 
senses I have the sensation of cold. When I withdraw 



The Child 8g 

my hand the sensation ceases, but the knowledge thus 

gained remains. 

Dr. Noah Porter dc^vn^s perceptio?t as "that power of 

the intellect by which it gains the knowl- ^ 

^ ^ . Sensations, 

edge of material objects." This knowledge perceptions, 
is gained through the senses and is called <^onceptio7is. 
di percept. "Percept is thus the simplest sense-product." 
When several of these percepts are combined into 
one general product, the product is called a concept, 
and the act of combining them, or of synthesis, is 
called co?iceptioji. 

The term apperception is often used by educational 
writers. In the simplest words possible, apperception 
is the process by which the mind calls upon 
past experiences to aid it in interpreting a ^PP^^'<^^P- 
new experience. 

We often say, "This is a new idea to me. I want 
time to think it over. " In order to reach a correct con- 
clusion we must first call up and consult such of our 
past experiences as bear upon the subject. It is not a 
new principle nor one difficult to understand. How 
often does the association of a new^ idea with those 
already stored in the mind throw a flood of light upon 
the entire subject! 

This process of apperception is all that makes our 
past experience of any value to us. If the teacher's 
experience consists only in doing to-day as he did ten 
years ago, with no new thoughts, no fresh ideas, then 
the more experience he has the worse for the schools. 
I own that I am sometimes afraid of experienced 
teachers. 
Watt's lines have many applications: 

Broad is the road that leads to death 
And thousands walk together there. 



go Common Sense Didactics 

But on the other hand if the teacher makes use of 
the past in order to interpret the present, if in the 
light and heat of the new he discovers the mistakes 
and errors of the old so as to avoid them, then his 
experience is the most valuable acquisition he can 
possibly have. 

Before a child enters school he has powers of 
thought fairly well developed; he reasons, he con- 
cludes, he judges. We can no more teach 
ileducron' ^^^ ^^ think than we can show him how to 
grow. He will think in spite of us, as he 
will grow without our help. We can surround him 
with right conditions of physical growth so that he 
may eventually have a strong body. We can guide 
and teach him so that he may think clearly and 
logically, and that is an essential part of the teacher's 
work. To do this intelligently the teacher must be 
able to distinguish clearly between induction and 
deduction. 

By deductiofi we apply a general truth to a special 
case. A simple illustration will make it plain. I 
pick up a piece of iron and am desirous of knowing 
whether it is a magnet. I know the general truth that 
all magnets attract iron. I expose this piece which I 
have in my hand to a pile of iron filings and find that 
it draws them to itself. I say at once that this is a 
magnet; this conclusion I reach through a process 
called deduction. I apply a known general law to this 
particular case. 

If on the other hand we use several related facts to 
establish a general law or conclusion we call the 
process induction. To use a homely illustration: 
After a sleepless night, in seeking for the cause I 
attribute it to the cup of strong coffee which I drank 



TJie Child gi 

at an entertainment the evening before. The next 
week I make the same experiment with the same 
result. It does not take me long to reach by mdiictioTi 
the general rule or law that a strong cup of coffee at 
night will break my rest and I learn to avoid it. Again, 
if it becomes necessary for any reason that 1 should 
remain awake all night I have recourse to the coffee; 
by deduction I infer that what my experience has estab- 
lished as a general law will prove true in this particu- 
lar case. 

To teach inductively requires careful thought and 
special preparation on the part of the teacher. No 
rule here will apply to every child. There are children 
with analytical minds who, from the whole, descend to 
the parts. In the common language of the day some- 
times "the how" can be learned with [profit, and "the 
why" left to be ascertained in the future. Every 
experienced teacher will agree with this. In other 
words, it is not true that the child must never learn 
anything which at the time he does not fully under- 
stand. 

The process of 'deduction and that of induction are 
often employed in the same recitation. Either method 
is capable of great abuse. Some teachers The two in 
with more zeal than wisdom would have co?tjunc- 
the child discover everything for himself. ^^^'^• 
But it remains true that a large part of the teacher's 
knowledge has been obtained through conversation 
w^ith others, or from books. Just so that child must 
take much of his knowledge at second hand. Nor is 
it true that all knowledge comes to the child through 
his senses. He gains much from the experience of his 
mates. His sources of knowledge increase as he 
grows in years. 



g2 Co in mo 71 Seiise Didactics 

The wise teacher pursues as far as possible those 
methods in instruction which the child will use in after 
life. Before he comes to school the little child has 
unconsciously used all methods. It is a wise teacher 
who takes him at his entrance into his room and 
guides and encourages him, but who does not endeavor 
ruthlessly to crowd him into pedagogical channels of 
man's creation. The little child sometimes has 
reason to pray to be delivered from his friends. 

The teacher must bear in mind that he has to deal 

with the world in its infancy. The children of the 

^L j^ poor and of the rich, of the learned and of 

The world ^ . ' 

in its the Ignorant, of the wise and of the 

infancy. foolish, of the pure and of the vicious, of 

the cultured and of the uncultured, of the tractable 
and of the headstrong, come to him that he may direct 
and mould their growth. So that perseverance, and 
persistency, and judgment, and firmness, and decision, 
and knowledge, and faith, and prayer — all fail him 
unless he has that rare insight into character which 
enables him to take the common things of life and 
nature, and use them as instruments by which he may 
stir the hidden impulses of the soul — impulses which 
Fhall endure, 

As long as the river flows, — 

As long as the heart has passions, 

As long as life has woes. 

This chapter should be carefully read. Observation 
is the foundation of Nature Study. The perceptive 
powers, when carefully developed, furnish a never 
failing source of delight to the child. Never repress 
the curiosity of the child when he asks you questions 
regarding things he has seen and heard, and never 



The Child 93 

treat with indifference any knowledge which he may 
bring you of things in nature which he has observed. 

"Hasten the day when teachers shall come to regard 
more fully and devotedly the child's inherent right to 
himself. He is endowed with a personal property 
which must not be trespassed upon. His feelings are 
a sacred realm, and no teacher should violate their 
sanctity. His right to his own self-respect is some- 
thing inalienable, and when it has been infringed upon 
and diminished a barrier to his development toward 
the higher life has been erected." 

This text is worthy careful consideration— 

A Little Child Shall Lead Them. 

Quotations Worth Reading 

observation. 

Spencer does not hesitate to declare that "success in all things 

depends on the power of observation." 

^ ^ —David P. Page. 

We want to draw out the child's interests, and to direct them 
to worthy objects. We want not only to teach him but to 
enable and encourage him to teach himself. 

, —R. H. Quick. 

Half of the wealth of the world is lost to most of us from lack 
of power to perceive. The difference between so-called clever 
children and intelligent ones is largely a difference in their sense- 
perception. ^,. r ., rr 
^ ^ —Elizabeth Harrtsoi\. 

If I ask myself what I have done toward the improvement of 
elementarv instruction, I find that, in recognizing observation as 
the absolute basis of all knowledge, I have established the first 
and most important principle of instruction. 

^ —John Swett. 

A few common fruits, flowers and spices or gums may be used 
with a view to forming a habit of sharp discrimmation, quick 
recognition and accurate naming. The drill exercise should be 
very brief, aiming at thoroughness rather than multiplicity, and 
mav be alternated with lessons in form, color, place, number, etc. 

■' ■ —Thomas I. Morgan. 



g4 Comma 71 Sense Didactics 

The foundation of all knowledge consists in correctly repre- 
senting sensible objects to our senses so that they can be compre- 
hended with facility. 

—Comenius. 
PSYCHOLOGICAL TERMS. 

Sense-impressions are the original material out of which the 
mind, by its elaborative processes, constructs the whole fabric of 
thought. 

— Emerson E. White, 

Perception supplies raw material, conception elaborates crude 
percepts into finished concepts. Percepts must be, in order that 
concepts may be. Here we find the key to correct teaching. 

—Joseph Baldwin. 

Percepts are , stored in memory, and from this accumulated 
store we draw as we need. Out of percepts we build concepts ; 
but percepts themselves give us many of our keenest pleasures 
and purest delights, as in the colors of a sunset sky or an October 
forest, or in the blending of musical tones. 

— Ruric N. Roark. 

Many of us cannot even tell the color of the eyes of our friends 
and daily companions. Carelessness in the observation of 
common events is just as striking; we fail to note the direction of 
the wind, the habits of animals, the arrangement of the stars; 
few can tell how a cow lies down or a horse gets up. This 
inability to see correctly, or to see at all, is shown in a practical 
way in the court room by the failure of eye-witnesses of objects 
and events to agree as to what was seen. 

—Charles A. and Frank M. McMurry, 
A PPER CEPTION. 

The word "apperceive" is derived from ad, to, and pev~ 
cepere, to grasp or to clasp. It literally signifies the grasping or 
clasping of one thing to another, a uniting, adhesive process. 
But the Latin verb also means to see or perceive: so that taken 
figuratively apperceive means to see or perceive one thing by way 
of another, or the coalescence of a new idea with an old one by 
modification. 

— Burk A . Hinsdale. 

Apperception lobbed of its metaphysical cloak, is simply the 
process by which the mind interprets a new experience by 
bringing to bear upon it the knowledge gained in past experi- 
ences. Everything one learns becomes a part of his mental 
mechanism, and as it becomes organized into himse]f this new 
set/, with each recurring experience interprets and gives it a 
meaning which is always colored and determined by the efifect 
past experience, past knowledge has had upon the self'. 

—A. R. Taylor. 



The Child 95 

The object, then, of learning in education is not only to make 
the mind fuller and to enrich the understanding, but if the 
instruction be of the right kind the additional knowledge ought to 
make the old knowledge more exact and better deiined. 

— T. G. Rooper. 

Mau}^ times the new is interpreted by means of the old until 
the mind becomes less dependent upon the latter, and gets the 
meaning of the new immediately by "reading itself into it." 
This process is called apperception. 

—A. R. Taylor. 

Finally do not fall into the heresy that children should be 
taught nothing that is beyond their comprehension. Under- 
standing is a thing of degrees. No doubt too little pains was 
formerly taken to adapt instruction to children, but that is no 
reason for flying to the opposite extreme and measuring out every 
idea and every word according to the child's present capacity. 

— Biirk A. Hinsdale. 
IND UCTION—DED UCTION. 

Synthesis is made more perfect by making analysis more com- 
plete, but when a proper synthesis is completed, there is no need 
for further analysis. Studies are termed analytic when the 
analytic process is most prominent, and synthetic when the 
synthetic process predominates. 

— Francis B. Palmer. 

Induction and deduction are merely different forms of 
reasoning. Through particular truths we reach general truths. 
This m.agnet, and this, and this, attract iron; since nature is 
uniform we infer that all magnets attract iron. This is inductive 
reasoning. It is inferring a general truth from particular truths. 
Thus we think up to principles and laws. We deduce particular 
truths through generstl truths. Since all minerals gravitate we 
infer that diamonds gravitate. This is deductive reasoning. It 
is inferring a particular truth from general truths. 

— Selected. 

Induction proceeds from particular cases to the general laws or 
principles governing all such cases. It is aided by observation, 
experience and experimentation. It furnishes the materials and 
the general rules for the solution of special problems which may 
present themselves in everyday life. "The method, rightly 
understood and practiced, leads straight to truth. It is the 
patient, candid, impartial, universal method of modern science." 

—Ruric N. Roark. 

To insist upon beginning at the beginning in everything, to 
cause the child to trudge along the long inductive road, to be 
satisfied with nothing short of his learning everything by his own 
individual effort, means that the child must be cut off from the 
past altogether and live wholly in the present. 

—Burk A. Hinsdale, 



g6 Co mm 71 Seiise Didactic s 

Questions for Examination 

7. Why is it no excuse for a teacher who has made a mistake 

to say "I never thought of that?" 
2. What is it to know a child thoroughly? 
J. Why are the five senses called "The five windows of the 

soul?" 

4. Name the usual order of sense-development. 

5. Define Sensations. 

6. Define Perception. 

7. Define Apperception. 

8. Distinguish between Deduction and Induction. 

g. Why is it true that the ;child may at times be taught what 
he does not then fully understand? 
10. What care must be taken in training the child at school? 

Suggestions Worth Thinking About 

/. What is consciousness? 

2. What is wrong in the expression, "Teaching the child to 

think"? 
J. How should you deal with children defective in one or more 

of the senses? 
4. How do you deal with children who have a special aptitude 

for one branch? 
J-. Which study do you think has the greatest disciplinary 

value? 



CHAPTER VI 

KNOWLEDGE MOST USEFUL TO THE 
CHILDREN 

The Making of a Man 

Diligence, quiet and unfatigued perseverance, industry, regu- 
larity and economy of time, as these are the dispositions I would 
labor to excite, so these are the qualities I would warmly 
commend. 

— Hajinah More. 

Wanted Men. — No doubt a college boy will learn more Greek 
and Latin if it is generally understood that college honors are to 
be mainly awarded for proficiency in those languages ; but what 
care we though a man can speak seven languages, or dreams in 
Hebrew or Sanscrit, because of their familiarity, if he has never 
learned the language of sympathy for human suffering, and is 
deaf when the voice of truth and duty utters their holy mandates? 
We want men who feel a sentiment, a consciousness of brother- 
hood for the whole human race. We want men who will instruct 
the ignorant, not delude them, who will succor the weak, not prey 
upon them. We want men who will fly to the moral breach when 
the waters of desolation are pouring in and who will stand there 
and if need be die there, applause or no applause, 

—Horace Mann, 

HAVING considered some of the things which 
the teacher ought to know it seems proper to 
inquire what knowledge is of the greatest importance 
to the child. On an average the school Relative 
life of the child does not exceed four value of 
years. Remember also that the child is in 
school only about seven months in a year, and five 
days in a week, and you will at once recognize the 
necessity of avoiding all waste and of making every 
moment tell for his improvement. There is no room 
in the American school for any exercise which is not 
7 97 



g8 Common Se7ise Didactics 

intended for the advancement of the pupils in one of 
three ways: advancement in their studies, growth of 
character, or the building up of sound bodies. What- 
ever is done for show, for looks, for appearance only, 
ought to be ruled out of the curriculum. Everything 
should be excluded which does not have a bearing 
upon the growth of the child. 

First we will consider the branches which probably 
will be of the greatest use to the man in after years. 
We all concede that when the pupil reaches his real 
work in life he must have a certain amount of book 
knowledge as a. result of his attendance at school. 
The common English branches as we usually term 
them are really at the foundation of all his future 
acquirements'. 

I desire to impress the following point as forcibly as 
I can. To know how to read stands at the head of the 
Reading list as the most important acquisition. 
Reading is more than the calling of words 
arranged in logical order. It is an art which but few 
possess; it is a creation, breathing life into the dull 
lines and bringing into bold relief the touches of skill 
and grace with which the author has adorned his work. 
To read well orally is an accomplishment, while to be 
a good silent reader, able to penetrate the secret source 
of the author's thought, is a perpetual delight, a means 
of growth to the mind. 

I quote the following from S. H. Clark's How to 
Teach Re adi?ig: "In the words of Carlyle: 'What the 
universities can mainly do for you — what I have found 
the university did for me, was that it taught me to 
read.' This remark, of course, applies to silent read- 
ing. A well-known college professor, in response to a 
school superintendent's question as to what would 



Knowledge Most Usefjil to the Children gg 

better the preparation of students for college, replied: 
'Teach them how to read.' Another college instructor, 
a learned authority on geology, remarks that he 
finds occasion to say to his classes about once a month, 
'It's a great thing to be able to read a page of English. * 
No one who examines the reading in our schools can 
fail to be impressed, not so much with the absence of 
expressive power, as with the absence of mental grasp. 
We are so anxious to get on that we are content with 
skimming the surface, and do not take the time to get 
beneath it. The reading lesson should be primarily a 
thinking lesson, and every shade of thought should be 
carefully distinguished no matter how long a time may 
be consumed. The habit of hurrying over the page 
which is so prevalent is clearly an outgrowth of school- 
room methods. Careless of the future we are too 
prone to push the pupil along, ignoring the simplest 
and most evident of psychological laws, that thought 
comes by thinking and thinking takes time." 

It is not my intention to give you directions for con- 
ducting a reading lesson. There are books written for 
this purpose which' I advise you to own and study. I 
can give you no better advice than this from Swett's 
America?i Schools: 

"By short and suitable concert exercises pupils 
should be trained to the proper use of the lips, tongue 
and teeth in distinct articulation. Occasional breathing 
exercises are of great value as an aid in securing an 
erect attitude and the free use of the vocal organs. 
Occasionally give a drill exercise on words containing 
vowel sounds, giving special attention to those sounds 
which children in some parts of our country are apt to 
give incorrectly; such as 'a' in half, calf, laugh, etc.; 
intermediate 'a,' as in ask, last, past, after, etc.; 'u' 



100 Common Sense Didactics 

after 'r,' as in tnith, rnde, fruit, etc. The school is the 
proper place for correcting provincialisms in pronunci- 
ation. Explain the essential diacritical marks of the 
school dictionary in order' that pupils may be able to 
find out for themselves the correct pronunciation of 
words. Train pupils to refer to the dictionary for 
definitions as well as pronunciation." 

So much on the mechanical side. On the intellec- 
tual side care should be taken to ascertain, by skillful 
questioning, how far the pupils have gathered the 
thoughts of the author of the piece which they are 
reading. Most children do not know how to study the 
reading lesson. You will have to show them by 
reading the lesson for them before they attempt to do 
the work for themselves. Read the lesson paragraph 
by paragraph while they accompany you closely in 
their own books. Encourage them to ask you 
questions. Give them some suggestions as to emphasis, 
inflection, thought, and leave much for them to think 
out at their desks. Set them an example which they 
may safely follow whenever you have occasion to read 
to them either for their benefit or pleasure. 

Young teachers are sometimes afraid to show a pupil 
how the piece should be read. They are told at insti- 
tutes that they should never do this, but 
the pupil. should leave the child to catch the expres- 
sion for himself. Imitation is one of the 
natural adjuncts of childhood, and the teacher should 
avail himself of it whenever necessary. Do not have 
any hesitation on this point. 

Miss Sarah L. Arnold, in Reading: How to Teach It, 
says: " 'Would you ever read to children in order to 
help them to get the right expression?' is a question 
which is frequently asked. By all means. There is 



Knowledge Most Useful to the Childreii loi 

no other way in which children can form an idea of 
good reading. Many children hear no reading in their 
homes. They are accustomed to monotonous speech 
and to careless articulation. It is necessary to read to 
them, and to read well, in order to show them what 
good reading is." Mark that the words "to read well" 
are in italics. 

Something also should be said of the spiritual side 
of the reading lesson. It is not enough to get the 
thought, but the thought must be brought j^^ s'biri- 
out in the tones and expression of the tual side, 
reader. This can be done only as the 
reader enters into the spirit and feelings of the writer. 
Here, as everywhere, interest is the keynote of 
success. For instance, in respect to reading Paul 
Revere' s Ride Miss Arnold has this to say: 

"Every effort should be centered upon helping the 
children to feel, to imagine the picture and to sense 
its depth of meaning. Say nothing now about holding 
the book in one hand, standing on both feet or throw- 
ing the shoulders back, but stir the class to feel as 
Paul Revere felt, and to tell the tale with enthusiastic 
pride. Let all the questions help to make the picture 
clearer and the feeling stronger. Read again, and 
again, and again, until the message becomes most 
familiar, but with every reading more eager than 
before.' 

Note here that Miss Arnold says the piece 
should be read "again, and again, and again." He 
is a poor teacher who cannot make every reading 
add to the meaning of the piece. Reading is the 
most important branch taught in our public schools. 
If a child can be proficient in but one branch, let it be 
reading. 



102 Comma 71 Se?ise Didactics 

Next in importance to the child is the ability to use 
the English language correctly. It is a fact which 

cannot well be disputed that our schools 
language^. ^ ^""^ ^^^ doing the work in English language 

in a creditable manner, or at least that we 
are not getting satisfactory results. One reason 
undoubtedly is that teachers do not realize the 
importance of better instruction in these branches. 
This is evident in the poor spelling, illegible hand- 
writing and faulty construction found in the corre- 
spondence of many teachers. Neither are the lower 
schools the only ones at fault. Professors in second- 
ary schools, in colleges and in universities fail woefully 
when tested by the highest standards of pure English. 
"I done it" was used three times by a college profes- 
sor in discussing the best way of teaching geography. 
A few suggestions may help you. Drill upon the 
use of capital letters. Make prominent the proper use 

of the period, the comma and the interro- 
tions^ gation point. The other punctuation marks 

may come at a later date. Paragraphing 
must not be neglected. The proper form for begin- 
ning and ending a letter, or a personal note, should be 
impressed upon the class. It was a specialist, a 
college graduate, an applicant for an excellent position 
in a leading high school who signed himself — "Yours 
respectably." Do not depend upon books or papers 
for model lessons. These will suggest themselves to 
you as the fruit of your careful study. The best 
language book which directors can introduce in the 
schools is a teacher whose daily conversation is a 
living example of pure English. The influence of 
such a teacher goes far toward forming correct 
language habits in the children. 



Knoivledge Most Useful to the Children loj 

The teacher in any school will find himself amply- 
repaid if he will make a careful study of methods in 
language instruction. // caiviot be done by Qyammar. 
those who discard English grammar as an 
abomination. It can be done best by those who have 
made a critical study of technical grammar. The most 
helpful thing you could do for yourself would be to 
study and thoroughly master some standard grammar 
of the English language. 

When a boy at school I was made to learn by heart 
Goold Brown's English Grammar, rules, exceptions 
and notes. Possibly there was time wasted in that 
work, but I have so often had occasion to avail myself 
of the knowledge of construction thus gained that I 
have never felt called upon to complain of those who 
required it of me. In connection with this we did not 
neglect the parsing exercises. 

I studied Andrew and Stoddard's Latin Grammar in 
the same way, and the knowledge thus obtained is of 
use whenever I have occasion to translate a Latin 
phrase or trace the derivation of words. 

Undoubtedly th'ere is a better way than this, but the 
child must have a thorough, painstaking drill in 
foundation principles if we expect him to become 
proficient in the use of common English. It is certain 
that the substitution of meaningless, crude "language 
lessons," as they are termed, for the more rigid drill 
in technical grammar has not proved a success if we 
judge by the results. 

Again, simplicity and directness count for very 
much in the schoolroom. A name is a noun; call it a 
noun and not a name word. Take it for granted that 
children are able to comprehend simple truths without 
so much circumlocution of speech as we sometimes 



lo/j. Co mm 71 Seiise Didactic s 

think necessary. It is characteristic of child nature 
to go directly to the point. We waste time when we 
thus trifle with children's brains. 

There is no reason to fear that spelling is becoming 
one of the lost arts. Yet there is a necessity for con- 
Si) I line- tiiiual drill, together with a critical study of 
\h.^ spelling lesson. The notion that spelling 
can best be taught incidentally in connection with 
other lessons is responsible for an immense amount of 
mischief. The spelling lesson should have its appro- 
priate place on the daily program, and you should give 
it the same attention you give to other important 
branches. In teaching spelling appeal to both the eye 
and the ear. While Webster's Old Blue Spelling Book 
has done much good in its day and generation it has 
also occasioned much loss of time and a vast amount 
of useless study. The technical terms and the long 
complicated words of five or six syllables which are 
seldom if ever used in the ordinary business of life 
should claim no part of the attention given to the 
spelling exercise. 

Oral spelling is not to be discarded. It serves a very 
important purpose in fixing the form of the word in 
the child's mind. The same is true of the written 
exercises in spelling. For the older pupils this is inval- 
uable. ^yN^\X,\w\\\^ Methods of TeacJmig, ^diys,; "Make 
a judicious combination of oral spelling with written 
exercises. Oral spelling secures correct pronunciation 
and awakens a keener interest in pupils; written spell- 
ing is the more practical, but is apt to become weari- 
some if carried on exclusively." 

Every pupil who passes under your instruction 
has a right to complain if he is not trained so that 
he can write a letter or make an application for a 



Knowledge Most Useful to the Children lo^ 

position without misspelling words which are in daily 

use. 

He should be able to write a legible hand and with a 

fair degree of rapidity. These are the two essential 

points. It makes little difference under 

^ , , . ^ . . . Pentnan- 

what peculiar system or penmanship he is ship. 

trained. As soon as he is left to himself he 
will develop his own natural style. There is nothing 
which is more characteristic of a man than his hand- 
writing. Do not, however, allow your pupils in their 
writing exercises to scribble carelessly and in haste. 
Insist that each paper shall be the best in penmanship 
which that pupil can do, and accept nothing less than 
that. Help him to develop his own handwriting 
along the lines which will be valuable to him as a 
business man. Point out the faults of his style. Have 
him compare his penmanship with that of others; 
excite his ambition, first as to legibility, then as to 
rapidity, and let him work out his own salvation. The 
large amount of written work required of the pupil 
will, unless carefully watched, do more than any other 
one thing to demoralize his penmanship. 

The study of history is attracting much attention 
among teachers. As usually treated it becomes only 
a skeleton with grinning skull and rattling Historv 
bones. It is composed largely of dates and 
unimportant particulars. There is nothing real about 
it. Pages are devoted to insignificant battles, or 
unimportant settlements, while a few lines suffice to 
portray the character of such men as Horace Greeley, 
Daniel Webster, Samuel Adams or Patrick Henry. 
And yet biography makes history and should not be 
neglected. 

Can you not manage to clothe this skeleton with 



io6 Cojnmon Sense Didactics 

living words and make it instinct with life and holy 
patriotism? The teacher of history should be a word 
painter. 

Picture for them the scene at Lexington. The class 
should be made to hear the drum and the shrill fifes, to 
behold the British red-coats as they line up on the 
village green, to hear the hoarse command of the 
British major: "Throw down your arms, ye rebels; 
throw down your arms and disperse!" followed by the 
quick, sharp order: "Ready, aim — fire." Make them 
see the patriots, one here and another there, and still 
another there, as they fall out of the ranks and bedew 
the sod with the first blood shed in defence of Ameri- 
can liberty. Again at Concord! 

By the rude bridge that spanned the flood, 

Their flag to April breeze unfurled, 
'Twas there the embattled farmers stood 

And fired the shot heard round the world. 

The pupils should be able to see in clear outline the 
rude bridge and the farmers, each with his musket, 
drawn up to dispute the passage of the enemy. Let 
them follow the retreat of the British and hear the 
crack of the guns from the covert of every haystack, 
out of every home, from behind trees and stone walls, 
until the weary troops, with tongues hanging out of 
their mouths, like hunted deer, are barely saved from 
capture by reenforcements sent from Boston to meet 
them. 

In this way the teacher who is master of the subject 
makes history a living reality. 

The history lesson should have three points in view: 
(a) to impart information; (b) to foster a healthy 
national pride; (c) to cultivate a taste for historical 
reading. 



Kiwzvledge Most Useful to the Children loj 

Every citizen should have a knowledge of the gov- 
ernment under which he lives. This knowledge he 
must acquire, in part, technically in the 
schools. And yet it is a question whether civics. 
teaching civics formally in the grades 
below the high school is not a misuse of time. How 
little of civics as taught in school is understood by 
children is well illustrated in this story: 

Some years ago a lady residing in Washington told 
me that they had visiting them a young lady from the 
east who had been well instructed in the best schools 
and had studied especially history and civics. As in 
duty bound they exhibited to her all the sights in 
Washington; went with her to the capitol, visited the 
Senate and House of Representatives which happened 
then to be in session, pointed out notable men, and so 
on. After her visit was finished and she had returned 
home she wrote them a letter of thanks, in which she 
said that while she greatly enjoyed her trip and 
especially her visit to the capitol, she should never 
cease to lament that she had failed to see Congress. 

The above was related to me by one in whose word 
I have perfect confidence. 

A little twelve-year-old girl who "took civics" in the 
seventh grade expressed her disgust when she said, 
"It is all bosh to me." The text-book should be 
reserved for the higher grades. There is very much, 
however, which you can do orally. The duties of the 
ofifice, but not the name of the present officer in state 
and national politics, may be learned. The office is 
permanent; the officer changes. The Australian ballot 
is easily explained in a general way, not in all its 
minutia, by the use of a ticket prepared for some 
election. The duties of a presiding officer and of a 



io8 Com?non Sense Didactic s 

secretary, the proper mode of making motions ana of 
putting them, and other matters, may be gathered by 
organizing the school into a debating club each Friday 
afternoon. If you are in earnest your ingenuity will 
devise ways of interesting your pupils in this work. 

After all the best work you can do in this line is to 
impress upon the pupils the dignity of American citi- 
zenship and the responsibility of the American voter. 
This can be done in various ways, but particularly in 
connection with history and the reading lesson. 

The pupil should be constantly reminded of the pos- 
sibilities of life in a republic. At the same time he 
should be cautioned against expecting 
of life ^ unreasonable things of himself. Many a 

man has gone through life sour, sulky, dis- 
appointed, growling, grumbling and kicking because 
in his youth his parents and teachers excited his 
ambition far beyond what could reasonably be 
expected of his talents. The child must learn from 
his teacher and from school life that some knowl- 
edge is for some men; other knowledge is for other 
men; but all knowledge is not for any one man. (See 
page 84.) 

In teaching arithmetic no late treatise, as far as I 

have seen, has made any improvement upon the fol- 

Arithmetic ^^^^^S statement of principles taken from 

Methods of Instruction, by J. P. Wickersham: 

"Before proceeding to describe these methods it 
may be well to state the principal ends for which 
arithmetic is studied and the most necessary condi- 
tions of their attainment. These ends are: First, to 
obtain a knowledge of the properties of numbers; 
second, to give practice in mathematical reasoning; 
third, to attain precision in the use of language, and 



Knozvledgc Most Useful to the Children log 

fourth, to secure skill in the application of numbers to 
the concerns of life. There are several secondary 
ends which must not be overlooked. Among them the 
following: First, rapidity and accuracy in the solution 
of problems; second, skill in the use of abbreviating 
artifices; third, an acquaintance with methods of 
proof. The following may be named as the most 
necessary conditions for the attainment of these ends: 
First, the object-matter of the science should be dis- 
tributed in a logical order; second, pupils should 
commence with the simplest arithmetical operation 
and be thoroughly grounded in each step of their 
progress before taking another; third, arithmetical 
definitions and rules should be understood by pupils 
before they are required to use them [sometimes the 
understanding comes through the using. — Ed.]; 
fourth, pupils should be taught to explain their work 
in clear, concise and appropriate language; fifth, 
numerous well-graded, skillfully varied problems, 
embodying every principle learned should furnish 
ample opportunity to pupils for making a practical 
application of their theoretical knowledge." 

If I were to add anything it would be the following 
directions: First, do not waste time in teaching pupils 
to read and write very large numbers, as billions, 
trillions, etc.; second, use fractions with small denom- 
inators. Nearly all the fractions used in business are 
halves, thirds, fourths, fifths and sixths, excepting, of 
course, decimals. Such fractions, moreover, as far as 
possible should be manipulated orally; third, carry on 
oral and written arithmetic together at every recita- 
tion, even though you have oral arithmetic as a sepa- 
rate exercise. Encourage the use of short methods — 
abbreviated is a better word. Economy of time and 



no Common Sense Didactics 

space is desirable in solving problems. Do not 

neglect oral arithmetic. 

These rules may be of use to primary teachers: 

I. Do not hurry the child in his number work during 

Pq^ the first two years of school life. 

primary 2. Gfve the child full credit for what he 

teachers. 1 j 1 r 1 j 

already knows of numbers, and use it as a 

foundation upon which to build. 

3. Do not use long and wordy formulas. The 
hences, the whences, the therefores, the wherefores 
are as meaningless to the child as so many Hebrew 
words would be. 

4. I quote from J. M. Greenwood, of Kansas City: 
"Let it be kept constantly in mind that these things 
(blocks, marbles, etc.) are helps only, and as soon as 
the child can work without, they should be cast aside." 
I believe that much earlier than we think the child 
ought to pass from concrete numbers to abstract. 

5. The use of measures and rulers and weights has a 
certain value in teaching arithmetic, but their con- 
tinued use in the upper grades has a tendency to make 
the pupil slow and uncertain in hismathematical work. 
Teachers show the result of such training in school in 
the length of time it takes them to write up an arith- 
metic paper of ten simple questions. A very common 
excuse for failure in examination is: "I could have 
worked them all if I had had more time." 

The rule as the child progresses should be: Less of 
the concrete and more of the abstract until he has no 
more occasion for thinking blocks and things than he 
has for counting his fingers. 

In geography study modern methods as far as prac- 
ticable. There is no study more inviting to an ingen- 
ious teacher than this. The miniature hifls and 



K7ioivlcdge Most Useful to the Oiildren i.ii 

valleys in the sand box; the streams which the chil- 
dren cross in coming to school; the landscape about 
the school building; the direction of differ- Q^ography. 
ent houses and churches, and a large amount 
of other material are available in rendering geography 
interesting to little children. 

For the older pupils mathematical, political and 
commercial geography is taking the place once filled 
by dry details and unimportant facts. In these days 
when the ends of the earth are brought together and 
we are exchanging our products for those of nearly 
every nation, the commercial relations which we bear to 
other countries ought to be, if rightly handled, of 
great interest to both pupils and teacher. 

Comparatively few teachers have been trained to 
instruct in geography by the laboratory method. The 
great majority of _them will continue for years to 
teach in the old-fashioned way. For that reason I 
have ventured to condense some ideas which I have 
gathered from a paper by the United States Commis- 
sioner of Education. 

Dr. Harris shows very plainly how much there may 
be in geography in the elementary schools under what 
is admitted to be a poor quality of instruc- /^^ 
tion and a very inadequate text-book. Harris' 
The average child will obtain a pretty vivid ^^ 
notion of the shape of the earth. He will connect 
with it the idea that the earth is one of the bodies 
which move around the sun. Then follow the ideas of 
latitude and longitude which are intended to determine 
the location of any place with reference to base lines 
like the equator or like the first meridian. 

He will have a general idea that the United States 
in which he lives is in north latitude, and nearly all of 



112 Common Se?ise Didactics 

Europe in east longitude as compared with the merid- 
ian of Greenwich. It is more important, he says, to 
the individual to know that Brazil is in south latitude 
than it is to know that the mouth of the Amazon is on 
the equator, and that the capital of Brazil is about 
twenty-three degrees south. These general ideas 
which the child learns are remembered. The specific 
ideas, unless exceedingly important, very soon pass 
out of his mind. 

Then come the mental images of the territories occu- 
pied by states and nations. He ought to have some 
notion of the shapes, boundaries and general positions 
of the states of his own country. For myself I cannot 
help believing that there was some benefit in the 
outline maps which children were compelled to study 
years ago. They certainly helped fix these forms of 
the contour of continents and states in the mind, and 
I find them of value to me in my reading to-day. 

There is, moreover, a class of geographical knowl- 
edge which relates to the formation and modification 
of the features of land and water. The child learns 
something in respect to the sources and outlets of 
rivers and of their navigability and usefulness. He 
obtains the general information regarding lakes, high- 
lands and lowlands and the trend of mountain chains. 
The child who studies geography in the way indicated 
in the ordinary text-book cannot fail to notice the 
climate and the dependence upon it of the fertility of 
the soil. He finds some typical facts in relation to 
heat and cold. He learns how altitude above the sea 
level affects the temperature. If explanation is given 
in one case he generalizes it and applies it to other 
countries. 

Then through this superficial study of the book he 



Knowledge Most Useful to the Children iij 

absorbs something of the diversity of labor over the 
surface of the earth, of that commerce which exists 
between nations by which things are carried from 
where they are worthless to where they are pre- 
cious. In other words, from where they are of little 
value to places where they afford a good profit to the 
seller. 

Then follow the occupations of men, the different 
races of men, the governments of the several countries, 
the beasts, and through all these means his memory is 
assisted in retaining the dryer but more essential facts 
of geography. 

I have quoted as briefly as possible this condensed 
statement because there is a feeling that the study 
and teaching of geography in the way most prevalent 
is absolutely a waste of time. I have endeavored to 
show you some of the things which you ought to 
emphasize in geographical teaching. You will find 
extracts from Dr. Harris in the notes to this chapter. 
They are worth your reading. 

That training is faulty which does not cultivate in the 

child a desire for'knowledge. Every recitation should 

be a stimulant, every hour spent in study _, , . 

11 • ' .' i- ^u ^he desire 

should prove an mcentive, every new truth /^ know. 

gained from any source should be an added 

strength, so that the duties of life may not quench his 

ambition, nor the severities of toil dethrone his ideal. 

Curiosity is the term which we often apply in speaking 

of small children; in the case of older pupils and of 

adults it is rather the pleasure which comes to one in 

the acquisition of knowledge; the consciousness of 

increased strength which always is present with one 

who has overcome great obstacles in the way of his 

advancement. 



114 Common Se?ise Didactics 

Horace Mann writes thus: 

"Every new idea that enters into the presence of the 
sovereign mind carries offerings of delight with it, to 
make its coming welcome. Indeed our Maker created 
us in blank ignorance for the very purpose of giving us 
the boundless, endless pleasure of learning new things. " 
But it is not intellectual knowledge alone which the 
man will need; he must know how to use his hands. 

They must be made useful, as the servants 
Eye and q£ ^.j^^ brain, in order that thought may 

find a tangible expression for itself. The 
employment of the jack knife for legitimate purposes 
ought to be encouraged in the school. The boy who 
is whittling out his idea — it may be only a stick with 
notches to hold the window at various heights, or a 
puzzle for the amusement or perplexity of his mates, or 
a simple piece of apparatus to illustrate some experi- 
ment in physics — has a faculty which may grow and 
make him a useful man in his generation. 

There is just as much need of men who can mend a 
wagon, or shoe a horse, or patch a roof, or repair the 
front-door lock as there is of men who astonish the 
world by the brilliancy of their inventions. 

It is not yet possible to introduce manual training in 
every school, but the teacher should feel the necessity 

of encouraging deftness and skill in the use 
training. ^^ ^^ hand, even in so small a matter as 

sharpening a lead pencil so as to protect 
the lead, or in repairing a broken slate frame. The 
boy who has acquired the habit of "making himself 
handy" about the house or barn at home is being edu- 
cated in a most practical way. 

L. D. Harvey says: "It is the ambition of every 
boy at a very early age to become the owner of a 



Knowledge Most Useful to the Children ii^ 

pocket knife. The reason for this is that the pocket 
knife is the tool which for him furnishes the largest 
opportunities for the exercise of his inherent desire to 
do. No one thinks of denying him the pocket knife 
because of the fear that its use will compel him to 
become a mere whittler, but on the contrary the 
thoughtful parent will furnish it because of its value as 
an instrument in the training of the child's manual 
and mental powers." 

In these days of sewing machines there is danger 
that hand sewing will become a lost art, yet the girl 
may find herself in a position where no sewing machine 
can be had and then her hand must do the work for 
herself or her friends. Furthermore the eye must be 
trained to aid the hand in its work. It is something 
for the eye to be able to distinguish colors; it is some- 
thing for the hand to trace on paper the design con- 
ceived by the brain; but the joint culture of the eye 
and the hand is necessary in order to produce the 
design in material form. 

I have dwelt upon this point for a moment in order 
to induce the teacher to think how great a work there 
is to be done along these lines of giving the child the 
complete use of his eyes and his hands. 

I hope this book will be read by some whose good 
fortune it is to teach in the midst of rural surroundings. 
Nature has a thousand voices for those who 
have ears to hear; beautiful things beyond teachers. 
number for those who have eyes to see. 
Knowledge presents itself in its most attractive form 
to the child who is early accustomed to search for 
it in pasture and stream and garden — among all 
living things that frequent the forest and the road- 
side. 



ii6 Common Se?ise Didactics 

George B. Emerson, in his lifetime one of the fore- 
most of Boston schoolmasters, writes thus of his child- 
hood: 

"As my father was a person of great public spirit, he 
was usually chairman of the school committee and 
took care that there should always be a well-educated 
man as master of the school. Notwithstanding its 
excellence my elder brother and myself were always, 
after I reached the age of eight years, kept at home 
and set to work as early in the season as there was 
anything to be done in the garden or on our little farm. 
I thus gradually became acquainted with sowing, 
weeding and harvesting, and with the seeds, the 
sprouting and growth of the leaves, the formation of 
the blossoms, their flowering, the calyx, the petals, 
their times of opening, coming to perfection, persist- 
ence of falling and the successive changes in the seed- 
vessels till the maturity of the seed, of all the plants of 
the garden and the field. I became also familiarly 
acquainted with all the weeds and their roots and the 
modes of preventing their doing harm. I was 
getting real knowledge of things; I formed the 
habit of observing. This was always valuable knowl- 
edge, the use of which I felt afterwards when I 
began to study botany as a science, and as long as 
I pursued it; for reading the description of a plant 
I saw not the words of the book but the roots and 
stems and leaves and flowers and seeds of the plant 
itself. And this habit of careful observation I natur- 
ally extended to whatever was the subject of my read- 
ing or study. 

"This was valuable, but I made another attainment 
of still greater value. I learned how to use every tool, 
spade and shovel, hoe, fork, rake, knife, sickle and 



K?iozvledge Most Useful to the Children iij 

scythe, and to like to use them. I learned the use of 
all my limbs and muscles, and to enjoy using them. 
Labor was never then nor afterwards a hardship. I 
was not confined to the garden and field. I had to 
take care of horses, cows, sheep and fowls, and early 
learned their character and habits, and that to make 
them all safe and kind and fond of me it was only 
necessary to be kind to them." 

In the appendix to the Report of the Committee of 
Twelve on Rural Schools, Francis W. Parker writes: 
"The statement of what a farm does for a q . .. 
boy in its general lines may easily be taken from 
from the experience of a farm boy in New p'^^hl^ 
England, for instance. As soon as he 
found himself upon the farm at eight years of age he 
began to study — to study in the best sense of that 
much-abused word. He began the study of geography 
— real geography. He observed with ever-increasing 
interest the hills, valleys, springs, swamps and brooks 
upon the old farm. The topography of the land was 
clear and distinct; its divisions into field, pastures and 
forests were to him the commonest facts of experi- 
ence. 

"He studied botany. All the kinds of grasses he 
knew — timothy, clover, red top, silver grass, pigeon 
grass; how they were sown, how they came up, grew, 
were cut, cured and fed to the cattle; what kind of hay 
was best for sheep, and what for oxen. . . . He knew 
the trees, the maple with its sweet burden of spring, 
the hemlock and the straight pine which he used 
to climb for crows' nests. He knew the wild ani- 
mals, the squirrels, the rabbits, the woodchucks; 
the insects, the grasshoppers and ants; bugs that 
scurried away when he lifted a stone. With the 



Ii8 Co?nmo7i Sense Didactic s 

birds he was intimately acquainted. He lived to 
become a school teacher, and taught school earnestly 
and bunglingly for twenty years before he had even 
a suspicion of the value of his farm life and farm 
work." 

The thoughtful, ingenious teacher will find many 
opportunities for training the eye and cultivating the 
use of the hand, thus aiding in bringing the body into 
subjection to the mind. No rules can be laid down for 
his guidance; he must contrive ways for himself. The 
penmanship lesson, drawing, blackboard exercises, the 
-degree of neatness or orderly arrangement of examples 
placed on the board, accuracy in map-drawing, all are 
in their way suggestive. 

Lastly, the pupil must not be left in ignorance of 

the laws of healthful living. This includes cleanliness 

of person, the laws of sanitation, wholesome 
Laws oj 1- . ^ • J • J- • 

health. ^\^^, temperance and judicious exercise. 

Very little information concerning the great 

principles upon the practice of which health and 

strength depend is fixed in the mind of the pupil when 

he leaves school. This ought not to be so. The fault 

is with the public. We expect from the teacher great 

things in the intellectual growth of the school; we 

demand but little, if anything, of him in the physical 

training of the children under his care. The entire 

system is wrong. The order of procedure should be, 

first, moral, then physical, and ultimately, intellectual 

training. (See page 82.) 

There is also demanded, as part of the child's outfit 
for life, knowledge of right choice when principle is 
involved. It is that inward grace of backbone which 
the times require of every true man. 

Last of all, be sure that he has such understanding 



Knowledge Most Useful to the Childrefi iig> 

of the hygiene of the organs of sense and of the laws 
of health that a strong and healthful development of 
all his bodily organs may enable his intellect to do the 
best work possible for all his race. 

But it is not intellectual strength alone, nor skill in 
the use of the eye and hand, which promises success to 
the child in coming years. He must also 
have such knowledge of right and wrong, neons. 
of those things which pertain to truth and 
justice and honest living, that he may be able clearly 
to distinguish them from those which characterize 
error and injustice and dishonest living. By precept, 
practice and example the child must be brought inta 
that state of mind in which feelings, choice and will 
unite in forming a perfect manhood, 

The one unchanging thing 
Beneath Time's changeful sky 

To sum up the main points of this chapter: The 
child, when he leaves school, should be in possession 
of such knowledge as will be of the most practical use 
to him in life. The branches, a knowledge of which 
constitutes a faiply good English education, should 
receive a large share of his attention. These branches 
should not be slighted in order to obtain time for more 
advanced studies. If the superstructure is to endure, 
the foundations must be solid. 

Going out into life he must carry with him a desire 
to know all things within his reach. But he should 
have in his mind a knowledge of his capabilities, and 
choose his line of work in accordance with their ex- 
tent. 

A great work is entrusted to your hands; it is nothing 
less than 

The Making of a Man. 



120 Comfnon Sense Didactics 

Quotations Worth Reading 
value of studies. 

The best education has come from contact with nature. It i5 
absurd to say that Abraham Lincoln was uneducated because he 
did not have the advantages of the schools. He was educated for 
the work of his life, even if most of his clay work was done with 
a hoe, his wood work with an axe, his physics with a crowbar. 

—Earl Barnes. 

In teaching reading there are just two ends to be sought: 
(i) To make the learner automatic and quick in the recognition of 
word and letter forms and values; (2) to secure his interest in the 
content, the spiritual element of the printed forms. 

— Ruric N. Roark. 

Whenever and wherever throughout the course a part of 
speech, a fact of etymology, a 'definition, an explanation, a rule, 
or general direction, a lesson in parsing or analysis, will directly 
assist pupils in comprehending or adequately expressing thought, 
any and every detail of grammar should be freely presented and 
freely used. 

— Francis W. Parker. 

In recent years there has been much so-called "language- 
study" in our schools ostensibly for the purpose of teaching the 
pupil how to write or compose with facility. He has been set at 
work writing numerous commonplace sentences about common- 
place things. The result of this language-study has been 
described not inaptly as "gabble." 

—B. A . Hinsdale. 
DESIRE FOR KNOWLEDGE. 

To this might be added that irrepressible curiosity, that all- 
pervading desire to know, which is found in the mind of every 
child. The mind, as if conscious of its high destiny, instinctively 
spreads its unfledged wings in pursuit of knowledge. This, with 
some children, is an all-sufficient stimulant to the most vigorous 
exertion. To this the teacher may safely appeal. 

— W. H. Payne. 

Ideals come in to compel men to go forward. It is easier to lie 
down in a .thorn hedge, or to sleep in a field of stinging nettles 
than for a "man to abide contentedly as he is, while his ideals 
scourge him upward. 

—Newell D wight Hillis. 

As the child is growing up educational training should be con- 
tinued and should include wider interests, teaching thoughtful- 
ness for others and at the same time the principle of self-coiitrol 
and close obedience to the laws of health. 

— Francis Warner. 



Knowledge Most Useful to the Children 121 

THE EYE AND THE HAND. 

How many schoolmasters of even the present regime compre- 
hend with John Ruskin that "the youth who has once learned to 
take a straight shaving off a plank, or to draw a fine curve with- 
out faltering, or to lay a brick level in its mortar, has learned a 
multitude of other matters which no lips of man could ever teach 
him"? 

—Charles H. Ham. 

When children go into the shops and find that they have to do 
something themselves, delight seizes their souls. They take the 
school home with them. When education penetrates the home 
and when the home penetrates the school then things move on. 

— Francis IV. Parker. 

In no country on earth is there as great a need of good, true, 
strong characteristics in human life as in America. In no nation 
do manhood and womanhood in their highest and noblest excel- 
lence have such a chance to count for so much. In no way is 
personal virtue, wise restraint and self-mastery able to exert such 
majestic influence as is possible to-day in the wonderful call for 
citizenship that is able at all times and under all circumstances 
to stand for the best and the most glorious things in our civil- 
ization. 

—H. H. Seerley. 

How pathetic the wrecks of men who have chosen the wrong 
occupation ! 

— Newell Dwight Hillis. 
LA WS OF HEALTH. 

Prompt and vigorous steps should be taken to acquaint every 
school teacher in this> country with such exercises as would 
quickly restore the misshapen, insure an erect carriage, encourage 
habits of full breathing and strengthen the entire trunk and every 
limb. 

— William Blaikie. 

The following quotations are from the article by Dr. 
Harris, referred to in the text: 

GEOGRAPHY. 

It must be admitted, however, that it is a mistake to send cne 
child to the geographical investigation of his neighborhood 
before he has heard anything about the great facts of the world ; 
he should be put on the investigation of his habitat in connection 
with the great facts which are mentioned in the geography. One 
approaches the explanation of great facts through little facts, but 
he should learn as quickly as possible to see these little facts on 
the background of great facts; hence they should be taught 
together. If this is so it is certainly a mistake to keep pupils for 



122 Common Se?ise Didactics 

many weeks or even many days upon the study of their neigh- 
borhoods before taking up the colossal facts which are of world- 
importance. 

In geography the pupil comes into contact with these substan- 
tial facts that lie outside of his daily experience and yet are 
neces'sary to him for explanation of that experience. Good 
instruction in the school will of course draw constantly on the 
daily experience of the pupil in order to explain the colossal facts 
which are not to be found in his neighborhood. The small things 
and phenomena which he sees every day about his habitat enable 
him to learn to understand the greater phenomena which are of 
historical importance. He sees, for example, every day the effect 
of the last rain-freshet in wearing away the soil of the road on the 
hill-side, and it furnishes the small fact by which he interprets 
the large fact of the wearing away of the Niagara-gorge. 

Even the old-fashioned geography gives items regarding the 
religious beliefs of the peoples of the different countries. Religion 
is the underlying principle of civilization. 

Thus we have a repertoire of the main points of sociology, 
namely religious beliefs, forms of government, industrial occu- 
pations, races, and costumes, and finally what each nation puts 
into the market of the world from its surplus for exchange with 
other peoples, and what it receives in return. 

MISCELLA NEO US. 

One thing grown-up people fail to realize about boy life, 
especially children's life, and that is the intensity of it. There is 
a strong life of hopes, fears, likes and dislikes, friendships and 
quarrels going on which the master little suspects. 

— /?. H. Quick. 

Latterly I have found it necessary to show that the core of the 
school curriculum is right ; that the need of an illiterate man when 
he goes away from home is a knowledge of reading and writing 
rather than a knowedge of bugs, beetles, lobsters, whales and 
other stuff which is displacing the three R's in the curriculum of 
many schools. 

—N. C. Schaeffer. 

Questions for Examination 

/. How much importance attaches to the reading lesson? 

2. State in your own words what Miss Arnold says of teaching 

reading. 
J. What is said in this chapter concerning the spelling lesson? 

4. What points should be made prominent in teaching arith- 

metic? 

5. What is the effect of stimulating the child's ambition 

beyond his natural ability? 

6. The importance of training the hand and the eye? 

7. What advantages has the teacher of the country school? 



Kiiozvledge Most Useful to the Childre?i I2j 

8. What is said concerning the laws of health? 
g. Sum up the main points of this chapter. 
lo. What is involved in the motto, "The Making of a Man"? 

Suggestions Worth Thinking About 

1. Who was Francis W. Parker? 

2. Who was George B. Emerson? 

J. In what way can a child be taught to use his eyes and his 

hands? 
4, Do you consider arithmetic the most essential branch in the 

curriculum? Explain. 
/. What distinction do you make between a disciplinary and 

an information study? 



CHAPTER VII 

MORALS ' 
Out of the Abundance of the Heart 

The simple and salient fact is we do not get hold of the little 
children soon enough. An unfortunate childhood is the sure 
prophecy of an unfortunate life. 

— Sarah B. Cooper. 

In the school, as elsewhere, good, honest toil is a remedy for 
many of those ills that come where idleness and looseness prevail. 
Every boy who does a piece of work thoroughly and completely is 
a different boy from what he was before. 

—Samuel 71 Button. 

THE SCHOOLMASTER'S PRAYER: 

Lord, deliver the laddies before Thee from lying, cheating, 
cowardice and laziness, which are as the devil. Be pleased to put 
common sense in their hearts, and give them grace to be honest 
men all the days of their life. 

—Ian Madaren, in "■Young Barbarians.'''' 

THE cultivation of morality in its broadest sense 
including the proper control or exercise of the 
emotional nature of the child, the cultivation of his 
-pf^g conscience as influencing him to right- 

cultivation mindedness, this is the most important 
oj mora I y. ^^^y imposed upon the teacher by his 
office. There can be no more weighty concern pre- 
sented to the youthful mind than how to attain to a 
right life by the process of growth in right conduct. 

To the accomplishment of this end all the exercises 
of the school should be made to contribute. The 
recitations, the recesses, the study hours, the general 
management and the discipline, are, or ought to be, 
strong factors in moral training. 

All the signs of the times indicate the need of more 
pointed and more radical moral instruction in our 

124 



Morals 125 

schools. If we expect to stay the tide of youthful 
crime we must begin at the foundation, and deal with 
the child as a responsible being. We must appeal more 
to his conscience, and impress upon him a knowledge ot 
the terrible consequences of wrong-doing which he will 
bring upon himself if he persists in his evil courses. 

The philosophers may philosophize as they will, 
but in plain language, avoiding all technical terms, 
we believe that Dr. Harris sums the whole matter up 
when he says: "The personal conviction of respon- 
sibility lies at the basis of all truly moral actions." 

It is to be regretted that many teachers regard 
moral training as a thing separate and by itself. It 
is too often dependent upon the opening exercises, or 
it is made the subject of certain lessons given at fixed 
and stated times. In such a case it has no connection 
with school life, and worse yet, it is wholly divorced 
from life outside the schoolroom. Thus moral train- 
ing fails oftentimes to take hold of the living child 
or to find any lodgment in his heart. 

Rules, regulations and restrictions have a place in 
moral training, but as the child grows in years the 
necessity for them should become less and less, until 
they can be dispensed with, and the man be left to 
stand upon the foundation laid in his youth. Moral 
instruction concerns the inner being, and must work 
from the heart outward. 

You will occasionally be met by the objection that 
the public schools cannot give any instruction in the 
domain of morals for fear that in so doing The prov- 
they may invade the field of creed and ince of the 
J . 1 • 1 •. • .1 r • school in 

dogma m which it is the peculiar province moral 

of the church to instruct its children and traming. 
youth. I cannot agree with those who take this 



126 Co mm 71 Sense Didactics 

position. Neither can I agree with those who regard 
the public schools as godless, and their attempts at 
moral instruction as of little worth. 

Society is based upon certain great, cardinal princi- 
ples that by universal consent are regarded as the 
foundations upon which depend the safety of our 
homes and welfare of our children. A community 
where every man is rated as a liar or a thief, where 
dishonesty is the rule and honesty the exception, 
where lawlessness in unchecked and human life held 
at a low estimate, would not be a desirable place for 
a residence. Here is a vast domain embracing every 
sphere of life over which the church does not claim 
exclusive jurisdiction and which the school may not 
rightly neglect. 

Every crime punished by the state is a transgression 
of one of the ten commandments; every virtue binding 
together the brotherhood of man is inculcated in the 
Sermon on the Mount. Honesty, reverence, temper- 
ance, purity, patriotism, truthfulness, justice, mercy, 
obedience, whatever tends to add to the usefulness of 
the citizen, the stability of the government, or to raise 
the tone of society comes within the legitimate prov- 
ince of moral instruction in the public school. 

I refer here especially to those virtues the practice 
of which renders it possible for men to trust each other 
in business transactions. It makes little 
mrtues. difference whether a man is fat or lean, tall 

or short, broad-shouldered or narrow- 
chested. We do not care what ticket he votes. We 
make no inquiries as to his church affiliations. But 
we do want to be assured that he gives full weight and 
honest measure, and is exact in his accounts; that he 
does not keep about his place of business lewd or 



Morals izj 

drunken clerks to insult our wives or cheat our chil- 
dren. 

I dwell upon these points because so many of our 
teachers fear to give definite and daily instruction con- 
cerning them, lest they offend some over-sensitive 
parent in the district. I desire here equally to empha- 
size the necessity of teaching our children obedience 
to law and reverence for constituted authority. There 
can be no question upon this point. Here the teacher's 
duty is as clear as the light of day. To live in open 
disregard of the laws of the land is inconsistent with 
the character of a good citizen, affixes to the offender 
the brand of disloyalty, and affords an example which 
the youth in our schools should be taught to shun. 

If I am asked how far this instruction in morals may 

be carried I am ready to answer that its extent is 

measured by the welfare of the citizens and Religion 

the necessities of the state. Then perhaps in the 

1 1 <<Ai7, ^ r ,1 schools. 

you ask me, as many have, What or the 

existence of God, and what of personal responsibility? 

What is my duty in this regard?" 

Let me ask you 'a question in return, the answer to 
which seems to solve the question. How can you 
teach civil government and the sanctity of the official 
oath if you ignore the existence of God, or discard the 
doctrine of personal responsibility? What will you do 
with the references to an overruling Providence, in 
Lincoln's Gettysburg Speech, in Washington's Fare- 
well Address, and in the proclamations for thanksgiv- 
ing or fasting put forth by nearly every president since 
the days of Washington? 

Read in the notes at the close of this lesson the 
extracts from the constitutions of three northwestern 
states and you can decide the question for yourself. 



J28 Common Sense Didactics 

A Frencn philosopher once said: "God is as neces- 
sary as liberty to the French people." What was true 
in France then is true in America to-day. 

To the thoughtful teacher the intent of moral instruc- 
tion is not a doubtful question. The teacher may not 
inculcate the peculiar belief or creed of any sect or 
class of people. The mind of the child in the public 
schools must be left free to receive such distinctly 
religious instruction in Sunday school, church, family, 
or otherwise as each parent may elect. In addition to 
this the wise teacher will in no way ridicule or bring 
into disgrace the peculiar religious views of the family 
from which the child comes. Nothing can be worse 
for the child than to have his respect for the religion 
of his parents treated scornfully or even lightly. Thus 
far the way of the public school teacher is hedged up 
by lines beyond which he may not lawfully pass. 

Notwithstanding all that is said to the contrary 
the fact that this is in name a Christian nation is 
recognized in every legislature in the land. In every 
court, from the justice office of the village to the 
supreme court of the nation, the sanctity of the oath is 
confirmed and strengthened by the expression, "So 
help you God." No legislative assembly, no court 
of law, no political convention would dare breast the 
storm of indignation which would be raised by its con- 
vening on the Christian Sabbath. If our government 
has any stability it is a stability rooted and grounded 
in the heart of the Christian people. If we have any 
culture it is an outgrowth of our Christian civilization. 

But without going beyond their lawful domain there 
What 7n ay is a broad range of moral instruction within 
be taught. which teachers may find a field for most 
profitable and efficient work. 



Morals i2g 

At the risk of repeating what I have already said I 
desire to enforce this point. There are certain acci- 
dental qualities which attach themselves to every 
man. They are his peculiar property and constitute 
the sum total of his individuality. With these we 
have no concern. But there are other vital qualifica- 
tions which make up his character and guide him in 
his dealings with his fellows, and these qualifications 
it is the business of the public school to cultivate in 
the children who attend upon its instruction. Tem- 
perance, regularity and promptness in meeting busi- 
ness engagements, honesty in dealing with others, 
reverence, purity, truthfulness and obedience, respect 
for law, the sanctity of an oath, whatsoever virtues 
enter into the character of the typical American citizen, 
these must be taught to the children of all classes 
alike, for they are the foundation of that practical 
religion which alone makes this life endurable. "These, 
taken as one grand whole, are the essence of that which 
we call faith, and faith is the essence of all religion." 
And so we come back to the point at issue, that there 
is occasion in the^ public schools for teaching that 
plain, practical, business morality which enters into 
the everyday dealings of life, and which, by unfold- 
ing to the child the brotherhood of man, enables him 
more fully to comprehend the fatherhood of God. 

Is this done in the public schools of the land? In 
a measure, it is, but not so fully as it ought to be. 
The intellectual has the preference over the moral in 
most of our schools. The text-book is on the throne. 
Mathematics, science, literature, whatever induces 
brilliant intellectual results, are crowded to the front, 
while the growth of those finer qualities of the heart, 
which make up such types of manhood and woman- 

9 



ijo Co mm 71 Se?ise Didactics 

hood as we hope for in the coming American citizen, 
is left in the background. 

The following quotation is from the pen of Cyrus 
Peirce, whom Horace Mann chose to be president of 
the first normal school in America: 

"By virtue of the understanding, man may learn the 
laws of God; but it is the conscience only that can 
Extract keep him in the practice of them. This 
from Cyrus has been practically very much lost sight 
of. In our schools, for the last thirty years 
or more, we have been educating the head, the intel- 
lect, so far as we have educated anything; teaching 
boys and girls a little grammar, geography, arithme- 
tic, and a few poor accomplishments, — rather than 
infusing into them a right moral spirit, and teaching 
them the great duties and responsibilities of life. This 
is implied in all our school arrangements, text-books, 
examinations and standards of school excellence. 
This is the reason, or a principal reason, that educa- 
tion, popular education, school education, has not 
checked, and will not check crime. The head will 
not do the work of the heart, nor the heart of the head. 
We must be more than informed of our duty. "If ye 
know these things happy are ye if ye do them." Let 
us go to work and do as much everywhere for the heart 
and the conscience as we have done for the intellect." 
As a part of moral instruction it is necessary to 
induce children to think seriously upon moral subjects 
J^^ . and to determine their own actions by judg- 

ing for themselves. As choice precedes 
action so motives precede choice. Do not allow a 
child to decide in haste a question involving a right 
or wrong course of action. Give him plenty of time 
to revolve the matter in his own mind. 



Morals iji 

At the close of a patient talk the teacher said to a 
troublesome pupil: "I do not want an answer to- 
night. Take the matter home and think it over, 
'Is my conduct in school such as it should be?' 
To-morrow or the next day come and tell me your 
decision, but take your time for it." There was no 
answer for several days. The teacher's treatment of 
the pupil was kind and cordial, but no reference was 
made to the matter of which both were thinking. 
Before the end of the week the boy had thought it out, 
and of his own accord after the session said to his 
teacher: 'T have been tlimkirig, and I was wrong all 
the way through. " 

Motives maybe classified thus: First, those which are 

personal in their nature. We all are actuated more or 

less by love of self. Only in rare instances 
1 ' r J 1 11 Motives 

do we find a person who can and does classified 

entirely forget his own interests in deter- 
mining his course of action. What we are unable to 
do ourselves we ought not to expect children to do. 

While it is right to inculcate a spirit of unselfishness 
in the child we ought not to look upon him as totally 
depraved because many of his actions are induced by 
selfish interests. If we can so far control and direct 
him that he will not strive to obtain any advantage by 
disregarding the rights of others we have accom- 
plished in many cases all that we have any right to 
expect. Self-approbation is a laudable motive, and 
the teacher has a right to appeal to it. Self-approba- 
tion is akin to self-respect. 

A second class of motives can be found in a desire 
to gain the approbation of others. Motives which 
may be gathered under this head are perfectly legiti- 
mate, and the teacher need have no fear of appealing 



IJ2 Commoft Se7ise Didactics 

to them. Care must be taken, however, to impress 
upon the pupil that approbation and praise gained 
through fraud or deceit is a lasting disgrace. 

The third class of motives includes those which 
appeal to the child's ideas of right, to his higher 
nature, to his sense of responsibility, — as a child to his 
parents, as a pupil to his school, as a citizen to his 
country, and as an individual to his Maker. 

In his address to a candidate for ordination Bishop 
Brooks thus described the spirit that should animate 
the minister: "The true mother loves her son and 
loves the truth; as a result the child is educated in 
the right manner. The disciples loved Christ, and 
they loved the men around them; consequently their 
work among them was crowned with success. If you 
would teach a man a duty or a truth which he should 
know you must have this double love. To comfort a 
man in grief you must have one hand on the strong 
rock of absolute truth and the other on the trembling 
afflicted soul. Kindness without truth is not kind; 
truth without kindness is not true." 

These are sound words and should be kept in mind 
by everyone who desires to lead the child into ways 
of truth and soberness. You cannot force these 
motives upon the child and have them live. They 
must be vitalized by love and kindness, and by a 
sincere interest in his welfare. An old writer says 
this, and it is worth remembering: "The more expe- 
riences we have the richer is our life. It is better to 
hold any portion of truth in the mind in a vital way 
than to have its whole baggage stored merely in one's 
memory." 

There is not space in this chapter to discuss the 
nature or functions of the will. It is enough for our 



Morals ijj 

present purpose to say that the will is the self-determin- 
ing power of the soul. Of two courses open to the 
child he knows that one is right and one ^, ... 
is wrong, — one involves disobedience and 
breaking away from all restraint; the other, obedience 
and the conscientious discharge of any duty. Here 
good motives and pure feelings come in to act as a 
stimulant to the will and to compel a right choice. 
On the other hand if the motives are low and selfish, if 
the feelings are sluggish and dead, then the will has 
no prompting to resist temptation and the wrong 
choice is the result. 

The boy played truant yesterday. To-day as he 
leaves his father's house the choice presents itself. 
"Shall I go to school or shall I do as I did yester- 
day?" What is to determine his course? His feel- 
ings, his regret at having caused his parents trouble, his 
shame at being punished, his desire to regain the place 
in his class which he has lost, his pride, his better 
nature, all conspire to lead him to the school. He meets 
a boon companion, ^an idler, a vagabond, yields to his 
influence and spends the day, as he did yesterday, in 
the fields and woods. What was the reason? When it 
came to the point of executing his choice his will was 
weak, and he yielded to temptation. He had not been 
taught to look beyond the pleasure of to-day. 

How can I strengthen the will of such a boy, or 
rather how can I aid him to do this for himself? By 
placing before him right motives, by appealing to his 
sense of duty, by encouraging him in any attempt to 
do right, by placing implicit confidence in his prom- 
ises, which are honest at the time made, to do better 
in the future. 

A more difficult case is found in the boy whose 



ij^ Ccmmoii Sense Didactics 

will is strong but depraved; it always impels to wrong 
action whenever a choice presents itself. Of the boys 
A strong taken from the streets, some of them young" 
but de- criminals, and placed in proper homes 

pravedwill. ^^^^^^ judicious men and women, ninety-five 
per cent are saved. How is this accomplished? By 
giving them something to do, by interesting them in 
some work which calls out their native energy; by 
meeting them more than half way in every effort to 
do right; by trusting them in important places or 
work, and by cultivating self-respect and the desire to 
excel in whatever they undertake. In every case 
give such boys an opportunity for self-reflection. 
When the child discovers that he is an object of sus- 
picion, that no one trusts him, his ruin is not far off. 
Arnold's boys used to say: "It is mean to lie to 
Arnold; he trusts us so." The boy's honor is often 
the most sensitive point in his character. You will 
seldom make a mistake in appealing to it. 

In close connection with what I have written is the 

cultivation of conscience. Every child has a character 

which is his own, an individuality which no 

{^OJISCICIICC 

man can take from him. To form this 
character, to give shape to this individuality, is largely 
the work of the conscience. 

The absence or death of conscience is the death of 
every moral sense. Without a conscience a man knows 
no distinction between right and wrong. He is chained, 
a helpless captive, to the wheels of his mad impulses; 
blind, he is lead in rough paths by his passions; deaf, 
the celestial voice which approves or disapproves our 
acts has no means of access to his soul. 

If conscience is thus inborn, how can we best 
nurture it; what are the conditions of its growth? 



Morals 13s 

There is a strong sustaining power in the perform- 
ance of duty. Conscience is the life of duty, it 
prompts to action, it impels while it supports. Just 
as the transfiguration of Christ was to his disciples 
a new revelation, so the performance of duty some- 
times opens our eyes to the wondrous beauty of a 
higher life; the dull and somber raiment of earth is 
changed for the white and shining garments; white, 
"so as no fuller on earth can white them." 

Conscience is best trained through habits of right- 
doing, and right-doing is not limited to those duties 
which we call moral. Every act which is required of 
the child must be performed with due regard to the 
motive and spirit of the action. The attempt must 
be not simply to enlighten conscience, but to so 
enlighten it as to deepen its hold upon the whole life 
of the child. 

Every action has a moral side and involves a ques- 
tion of right and wrong. It is not enough that the 
lesson is learned or neglected, the given task per- 
formed or unperformed, the command obeyed or dis- 
obeyed, the words pure or impure, reverent or profane. 
Back of all and under all are motives; the spring of 
every virtue is a tender conscience. 

This caution is, in some instances, very needful. It 
is a species of cruelty to nurture a tender conscience 
in the child, and leave him with a weak and f,, ., 
vacillatmg will to become the prey of his bothcon- 
passions and afterward the victim of a bit- ^J^if^^ ^^^ 
ter remorse. The will can be exercised only 
when one or two or more courses is to be chosen. In 
addition to nurturing the conscience we must bring to 
bear upon the child the power of duty and obligation; 
the force which there is in must and otight^ in thou shalt 



1^6 Co mm 71 Seiise Didactics 

and tliou shalt fiot; we must appeal to motives rather 
than to impulses; we must show him the results of 
actions if we would have him both know and choose 
right things. Against this cultivation, on the part of 
the teacher, of the child's moral sense by the nurture 
of conscience and the strengthening of the will, there 
is no law. The state should require it, the church 
should urge it, the community should demand it, 
because the absence of it threatens them all with a com- 
mon peril. Neither is there any law which forbids 
the teacher to recognize the child as an accountable, 
immortal being. 

There are boys and girls, it is true, who are deficient 
in conscience, as there are those deficient in intellect. 
If we deal tenderly and patiently with one. 
Children so ought we to deal tenderly and patiently 
Z^nsdence!' with the other. Very much depends upon 
the motives which are placed before such a 
child. It is in vain that we attempt to instil correct 
notions of God and his claims upon us as his children 
before we have aroused a sense of right and wrong in 
the mind. The first dawnings of conscience as an 
acknowledged power should be used to correct bad 
habits, for often that which we are accustomed to 
call inherited tendency to crime is only habit, born 
of vicious surroundings; by careful nurture it can be 
brought under the power of conscience. 

What now are the conditions most favorable to 

the growth of conscience? In dealing with the child 

^ ,. . we often appeal to his fear of punishment. 

Conditions . . K , • 

favorable to ^o his self-approbation, to many mmor 

growth of motives which are in themselves lawful and 
conscience . 

proper , but we do not often enough bring 

him face to face with the question, "Is it right?" 



Morals ijy 

In the lower courts the child pettifogs with his 
lame excuses, pleads the law of circumstances and 
frequently baffles justice. We do not often enough 
appeal to that higher court wherein" the silent, 
thoughtful judge strips the question of all sophistry, 
and in plain, unmistakable terms decides each ques- 
tion in its turn as right or wrong. The continual 
exercise of conscience is the surest condition of its 
growth. 

If by the promptings of this inner moral sense we 
can place truth in such a light that the child sees 
and feels it to be more desirable than error, then the 
culture and development of conscience must be 
regarded as the foundation of moral instruction. 

We are told that the design of education is to build 

character. But character is not something to be built 

and torn down and rebuilt at our pleasure. _. 

. . r 1 1 1 Character- 

It is not like a suit of clothes to be put on building not 

to-day and put off to-morrow. Character is the design 

. ^ r • A of education. 

a thing of growth, not of creation. As every 

movement of the muscles adds strength to the limbs 
of the growing child, so every act which takes cog- 
nizance of duty, which offers to the child a choice 
between right and wrong gives tone and shape to the 
character. (See page 44.) 

It is not the relation of the child to politics, it is 
not how to develop his power to earn and hoard 
money, it is not an accumulation of dry facts — which 
may be as useful to a villain as to an honest man — 
that most nearly concern the child and his teacher. 
The relations of the child to himself as an accountable 
being; the inward consciousness that he is responsible 
for his actions and their results; the relations, above all 
others, which, commencing with himself as the center, 



Jj8 Common Sense Didactics 

radiate through his words, his deeds, his motives, 
influencing all with whom he comes in contact — these 
are to his character what the warp and woof are to 
the texture of the cloth. 

Right actions always spring from right-mindedness. 
If we can induce the child before he acts to think 
in reference to results of his actions he will seldom 
do wrong. Thus it is entirely proper that the child 
should be instructed in the department of morals, 
especially in those minor habits which constitute the 
conduct of every-day life. Still the practice of lectur- 
ing and preaching to the children should not be over- 
done. 

An incident which happens m connection with the 
school may sometimes be utilized, and made the basis 
of a most effective talk. So the reading of some story, 
or some selection from a popular author, may be 
introduced as inculcating a healthy moral lesson. But 
more than this every exercise or recitation should have 
a bearing upon the moral side of the life which pre- 
vails in the schoolroom. Moral training in the school 
should lead directly to independence in moral actions. 
This cannot be accomplished unless we can. develop in 
the child a conscience which becomes the ruler of his 
conduct. 

This thought also must not be omitted. The 
example of the teacher is often the most powerful 
influence which can be brought to bear in 
exainple. moral instruction. Nowhere as here can the 
power of unconscious tuition be seen and 
felt. Children are natural imitators, so that the dress, 
the speech, the tones of voice, the manners of the 
teacher are apt to be reproduced in the plays and 
amusements of the children at recess and at home. 



Morals IJQ 

The conscientious teacher must have a care that in 
none of these things does he offend one of the little 
ones of his flock. 

Wickersham says upon this point: "The teacher's 
example, his daily walk and conversation, has a 
powerful influence upon the young of whom he has the 
care. We all grow like our ideals. The ideal of a 
child is the teacher he loves. On his soul is stamped 
the teacher's image, and the impression deepens day 
by day. Silently, unconsciously to either party, the 
teacher's life settles down upon the child's life and 
moulds it in its own likeness. Without a spoken word 
the example of the true teacher is a continuous ser- 
mon, sinking into the young hearts about him and 
working marvelous results in forming character and 
shaping life. 

"The great teachers of the world have not been its 
famous scholars, but those who by example, by word 
and deed, were able to influence for good the young of 
whom they had charge — those at whose magic touch 
all that is best in, human nature is evolved and made 
ready to serve mankind and to honor God." 

As a conclusion to this chapter: These three terms 
— the intellect, the sensibilities, the will — are com- 
monly used in discussing the question of r^^^/^/^/^;; 
moral training. Through the intellect we 
apprehend or know, through the sensibilities we feel, 
through the will we determine action. Knowledge 
precedes the sensibilities, or feelings, as some authors 
designate them. Mark Hopkins says: "Without 
intellect there is no light, without feeling there is no 
motive, without motive there is no choice." Thus 
both intellect and sensibility are necessary to motive; 
motives rule the will and determine the action. 



140 Com?no7i Se7ise Didactics 

It is well for the teacher to remember that there is 
sometimes a child with a normal intellect, but without 
any sense of fear, or love, or hatred, or reverence. The 
sensibilities seem to be wanting, and it is little less 
than a miracle to create or awaken them. Another 
with a feeble intellect has very keen sensibilities. Yet 
another is deficient in will, although the intellect and 
feelings are fairly active. Probably these exist, if only 
in an unconscious state, in the mind of every child 
excepting the natural idiot, and even in the case of 
the idiot it is marvelous what skillful training will 
sometimes do. 

Button says in his Social Phases of Education: "To 
treat harshly a child who bears the marks of a low 
and ignorant or even criminal ancestry would partake 
of the Chinese method of administering justice. The 
greater the misfortune of the child the more heavily 
he is handicapped by the degradation and sins of the 
family to which he belongs, the greater his claim to 
that sympathetic discrimination and masterly treat- 
ment, and that redemptive love which alone can save 
him and lift him above the conditions which threaten 
to destroy his life." 

You will see as a result of this discussion that 
developing the intellect is only a small part of your 
work. To cultivate the finer feelings of man's nature, 
so to stimulate the conscience that under its prompt- 
ings the will must always make a right choice, this is 
the highest work you can do for the pupils in your 
school. 

There is nothing more certain than that a man who 
lives the life of a hermit, cannot know Christ and the 
fullness of his errand. Moral instruction in our 
schools should fit the child for a life full of activity 



Morals i^i 

and of every manly virtue. He cannot hope to escape 
from the evil that is in the world. The tares grow with 
the wheat, the perishable flourishes side by side with 
the imperishable. Only by painstaking, persistent 
culture of the conscience can the child be led to 
distinguish between that which at the last shall be 
gathered for the burning, and that which shall be gar- 
nered to fill the store-house of infinite existence. 

To accomplish the ends aimed at in this chapter it 
is necessary that you teach 

Out of the Abundance of the Heart. 

Quotations Worth Reading 

the cultiva tion of morality. 

Moral training promotes intellectual advancement. This it 
does by giving a high and sustained energy, such as a sense of 
duty and moral principle can alone supply, by removing 
hindrances to progress, and by the questions which it oflfers for 
examination and careful judgment. 

—John Gill. 

Functions of moral sentiment: (i) It deals with voluntary 
human action — conduct. (2) It considers motive or intention. 
(3) Its judgment is really on character. 

— Selected. 

It should not be claimed that there is no art or science of 
training up to virtue. Remember how absurd it would be to 
believe that even the most trifling employment has its rules and 
methods, and at the same time that the highest of all departments 
of human effort — virtue — can be mastered without instruction 
and practice. 

— Cicero. 

The home life and the school life of the child should prepare him 
for transition to freedom by effective training in self-control and 
self-guidance, and to this end the will must be disciplined by an 
increasing use of motives that quicken the sense of right and 
make the conscience regal in conduct. 

— Emerson E. White. 
RELIGION IN THE SCHOOL. 

Has not all education this one purpose, that the pupil shall do 
consciously and with free self-decision what moral instruction 
impresses upon him, what in the beginning, however, he does 



14-2 Common Se?ise Didactics 

only by compulsion from parents or teachers, as well as from 
habit? Education should create a will which harmonizes with the 
insight determined by the moral ideas. 

— Habit in Education. 

From the preambles to the constitutions of three great states: 

Iowa. — "We, the people of the State of Iowa, grateful to the 
Supreme Being for blessings hitherto enjoyed, and feeling our 
dependence on him for a continuation of those blessings, do 
ordain and establish a free and independent government." 

Minnesota. — "We, the people of the State of Minnesota, grate- 
ful to God for our civil and religious liberty ... do ordain and 
establish this constitution." 

Wisconsin. — "We, the people of Wisconsin, grateful to 
Almighty God for our freedom, ... do establish this constitu- 
tion." 

The cause of popular education never received a greater harm 
than in the promulgation of the idea that the teaching in our 
Schools must be wholly secular. Whatever tenets distinguish the 
various sects, whatever is a matter of serious controvers}^ in faith 
or doctrine, is rightfully excluded; but honor, honesty, justice, 
love, fear, reverence, purity, obedience, the claims of God, and 
right, and duty, may be taught, and infringe on no man's 
conscience. 

—Iowa School Report. 
MOTIVES. 

The best motive which the circumstances will admit of is the 
one to which appeal should be made; and the lower ones should 
be so used as to lead gradually up to those of higher character. 
We must be content with small things at first; to get a child to 
act from principle at all, even of low character is a great point 
gained. 

—Joseph Landon. 

It is neither just nor wise to charge the worst motive of them 
all with more than its due share of influence. The worst motives 
may be pointed out to excite an inversion of them, and they 
should not be excused because an offender is able to point out 
some better associated motives, but after a clear analysis of all 
the motives it should be the endeavor to develop the feelings that 
will prevent such action and strengthen correct motives. 

— Selected. 
THE WILL. 

The Training of the Will : 

1. Training should follow the order of growth. 

2. It should proceed through instruction and exercise. 

3. It should demand good discipline. 

4. It should demand the formation of good habits. 

5. It should study disposition. 

6. It should encourage self-education. 

—Dexter and Garlick. 



Morals 14J 

We mean by the Will that constituent of a man's being by 
which he is capable of free action, knowing himself to be thus 
capable; just as we mean by the Intellect, that constituent of his 
being by which he is capable of thought, knowing himself to be 
thus capable. 

— Mark Hopkins. 

The other and more pleasing aspect of the teacher's work in 
aiming at the foundation of character is the encouragement of all 
good-dispositions. The nourishment of the good is the surest 
way of repressing the evil. 

— Henry Calderwood. 

CONSCIENCE. 

Conscience includes not only a susceptibility to feeling of a 
certain kind but a power or faculty of recognizing the presence of 
certain qualities in actions (rightness, justice, etc.), or of judging 
an act to have a certain moral character. 

—James Sully. 

A tender conscience of all things ought to be tenderly handled ; 
for if you do not, you injure not only the conscience, but the whole 
moral frame and constitution is injured, recurring at times to 
remorse, and seeking refuge only in making the conscience 
callous. 

— Burke. 

Conscience is the light God has placed in every human breast 
to enable us to know right from wrong — a monitor that gives us 
peace and joy when we have done our duty, and fills us with 
sorrow and remorse when we have come short of its requirements. 

—J. P. Wicker sham. 

EXAMPLE. 

The teacher should be patient, full of hope, of a cheerful spirit, 
generous, a lover of children, full of benevolence, just, a lover of 
order, a reverencer of God and his laws, conscientious, firm, with 
a talent to command. 

— The School and the Schoolmaster. 

I look back to-night and count nearly a score of teachers on my 
fingers, and raise the question of their influence upon me. Just 
one crowds any or all of the others out, and that one was neither 
the handsomest nor the most learned among them. He was the 
only one, however, who seemed to live wholly in his pupils. 

—A. P. Taylor. 

The teacher by his example does teach for good or evil whether 
he will or not. Indifference will not excuse him, for when most 
indifferent he is not the less accountable. 

—David p. Page, 



144 Co mm 71 Sense Didactics 

A THOUGHT FOR SEVEN DAYS 
To be honest, to be kind ; to earn a little and to spend a little 
less ; to make upon the whole a family happier for his presence ; 
to renounce when that shall be necessary and not be embittered ; 
to keep a few friends, but these without capitulation. Above all, 
on the same grim condition, to keep friends with himself; here is 
a task for all that a man has of fortitude and delicacy. 

—Robert Louis Stevenson. 

Questions for Examination 

/. Name those virtues which the public school may rightly 

inculcate. 
2. How far may instruction in morals be carried in the public 

schools? 
J. What three terms are used in discussing the question of 

moral training? Discuss them. 

4. How may motives be classified? 

5. Define the will. 

6. What is conscience? 

7. How may conscience be trained? 

8. Why is it necessary to develop the conscience of the child? 

9. What is said of children who are deficient in conscience? 
10. What is the design of education as concerns the character? 

Suggestions Worth Thinking About 

/. What can I do for the most careless child in my school? 

2. What for the worst child? 

J. How can I stimulate the idle to study? 

4. What remedy can I devise to break up truancy? 

J-. The effect of my personal example. 



CHAPTER VIII 

HABITS 
A Helping Hand 

Then sow ; for the hours are fleeting, 

And the seed must fall to-day : 
And care not what hands shall reap it, 

Or if you shall have passed away 
Before the waving cornfields 

Shall gladden the sunny day. 

—A delaide A nne Procter 

To you, teachers, has been given the most delicate work God 
has ever given to mortal man, — to train immortal mind to a 
destiny worthy of its Creator. You are to stand before God's 
angels, little children, and 

"Ever, evermore, shall it be thine 
To mark the growing meaning in their eyes, 
And catch, with ever fresh surprise and joy, 
Their dawning recognition of the world." 

—Jonathan Piper. 

George Macdonald uttered a most beautiful sentiment when he 
said: "The woman who takes into her heart her own children 
may be a very ordinary woman, but the woman who takes into 
her heart the children of others, — she is one of God's mothers." 

THE formation of habits has such an important 
bearing upon the growth of character that I 
have deemed it worthy of a chapter by itself. Habit 

rules the life of everyone. We cannot con- ^^ , . 

- , , . , . c Habits and 

ceive of such a thing as the existence ot character. 

man without habits. The first and perhaps 

the greatest problem which confronts a teacher is how 

to form correct habits of action in the life of the child, 

and this problem is often intensified by the necessity 

of first breaking up those which are vicious. You 

must eradicate the evil before the good will flourish. 

10 1 45 



1^6 Co mm 71 Sense Didactics 

Remember also that bad habits cannot be broken up 
until you present to the mind of the child some motive 
for the formation of better ones. (See page 130.) 

To the question, "What is habit?" I give this 
answer: Habit is that manner of doing or living which 
characterizes the individuality of the man. What is 
the origin of habit? Sometimes it is part of man's 
heritage; sometimes habits are the fruit of unconscious 
tuition; sometimes they are formed through the influ- 
ence of depraved motives, while the child is ignorant 
of the result; and sometimes they are the fruit of careful, 
judicious instruction and discipline. 

Motives induce habits, and thus control the activ- 
ities of body and mind. A change of habit can be 
induced only through a change of motives. (See 
page 131.) 

But it is through education alone the influence of a 
superior upon an inferior that the child becomes 
enlightened enough to distinguish between worthy and 
unworthy motives, and free enough to renounce one 
habit and adopt another. This is true in manhood as 
in childhood and youth, but the man is himself both 
schoolmaster and pupil; thenceforth emancipated from 
his teachers his future depends upon whether he has a 
true conception of right, whether this conception is 
realized in himself, and whether he can subordinate 
both the conception and the realization to right lines 
of action. 

The individuality of every man has two sides — the 
particular, which characterizes him as a unit, and 
the universal, through which he comes in contact with 
others of his race. His habits partake of this dual- 
ism; some of them as his speech, his walk, his laugh, 
are individual only; they are passive in their nature 



Habits 147 

and do not reach beyond his own experience. Others, 

as his habits of work, of obedience, of sympathy, of 

cheerfulness, are universal. They are active in their 

nature and affect all with whom he associates. 

Habits are very largely the result of unconscious 

tuition during childhood and youth. No one can 

say that any knowledge is wasted, because power of 

no one can trace the lineage of his present iinconscious 

1 1 • r thought. 

thougnt and action back to its hrst cause. 

I do not know what made me what I am to-day, 

because my line of mental and moral action is the 

resultant of many influences and motives, no two of 

which run in parallel directions. 

Think naught a trifle, though it small appears: 
Small sands the mountains, moments make the years, 
And trifles life. 

And yet as I am conscious of my being so am I 
conscious that the truths which have the deepest root 
in my soul are those of earliest growth. The seed 
which matures before the early frosts was sown 
before the weeds sprang up, received the dews while 
yet the nights were longest and the sunshine while 
the skies were clearest and the days were brightest. 
The body grows weary with study, learning is treach- 
erous, a hidden traitor lies between the covers of every 
book, but those lessons which we learned in youth, 
without conscious effort of the mind, — theirs is 

That friendship which first came and which shall last endure. 

We do not make enough of the power of uncon- 
scious thought — of what German writers style "pre- 
conscious activity of mind." The thoughts of our 
silent hours — they enter without salutation, they walk 
by our side through the street, they sit with us through 



148 Co?nmo?i Sefise Didactic s 

our reveries by the evening fire, they are present in our 
dreams, they depart without farewells; life alone can 
give us power to read what they have written. (See 
page 67.) 

We have no occasion then to teach the child to 
think; to him thought is as natural as his breath. We 
can, however, so place within his reach knowledge 
of facts, of actions and results, that through the uncon- 
scious activity of his mind, they become assimilated, 
imbedded into his being and are forever a part of his 
soul. 

One' thing more must be said in this connection; 
between the child's moral and intellectual growth there 
Moral and Js a broad distinction. The child waxes 
intellectual strong intellectually by what he does for 
himself; his moral nature, especially in 
early childhood, is formed for him rather than by him. 
In later years it develops into a growth rather than a 
formation. Carpenter, in his Mental Physiology, speaks 
of the "moral atmosphere" in which the child lives, 
the breathing of which is as involuntary as is the 
action of the respiratory organs of his body. Intel- 
lectual force and moral force develop side by side, but 
each has its roots in different soil, and each is 
nourished through a different process. 

If commenced at an early age with this end in view 
education can be so directed as to control and fashion 
habit, but habit once formed is very apt to resist, if not 
defy, education. Habit is characterized by persistency. 

There are certain personal habits which are the basis 
Personal of all moral training. I use the word train- 
habzts. jj^g jj^ j^g g^^j^^ sense, "to form by practice." 

Out of the many habits which the school should aid 
in forming I have selected: 



Habits i4g 

(i) Neatness. — In this I include personal cleanliness. 
It can best be taught by example. If necessary to 
speak to a pupil about his personal appearance it should 
be done privately; never in the presence of others, so 
as to mortify the child. A neat, tidy appearance 
about the wardrobes and in the schoolroom is a very 
efficient aid in the management of pupils. Careless- 
ness in this respect is little short of being criminal. 
Some one says, with much truth, that to teach the 
child to come to school with clean hands and face, to 
brush his teeth and black his shoes, is to put him in 
the way of leading a godly life. Not only is cleanli- 
ness next to goldliness, but in many cases there can 
be no godliness without cleanliness. 

(2) Order. — I do not mean discipline, but having a 
place for everything and everything in its place. 
This is one of the most useful habits which you can 
help the child to form. If he becomes a business 
man it will save him much time and vexation of spirit. 

In the early days a conductor of the teacher's insti- 
tute was accustomed to number each hook or nail in 
the wardrobe and 'to give a corresponding number to 
every teacher. Then he directed each teacher to 
hang hats and wraps on the hook corresponding in 
number to the one he held. He sent the monitor out 
after the exercises commenced, and if any clothing 
was found out of place the owner was brought to 
account. When asked why he did this he answered: 
'T consider this as useful a lesson as anything they 
learn at the institute." 

(3) Regularity, including Pimctuality. — Tardiness and 
irregularity of attendance are most prevalent in small 
towns and in country districts. It is difficult to break 
these habits up because parents do not stop to consider 



ijO Co mm 71 Se?ise Didactics 

how injurious they are to the future welfare of the 
child. Make the children understand that no business 
man will tolerate about his establishment a clerk who 
is habitually late. There is one rule which I commend 
to you, given to me by an old teacher: ''I do not fail 
to inquire, personally if possible, into every case of 
absence and tardiness as soon as I can after it occurs. 
By this means I manage to impress upon parents and 
pupils the idea that I am continually concerned in 
the attendance at school." The best remedy for 
irregularity which I can devise is to make everything 
about the school as cheerful and attractive as possible. 
Let the children learn by heart this saying of Horace 
Mann's: ''Lost^ yesterday, somewhere betzveen sunrise 
a?id sunset^ two golden hours ^ each set with sixty dia- 
mond mintctes. No reward is offered, for they are go?ie 
forever.'' Children generally are not impressed with 
the value of time or the consequence of lost oppor- 
tunities. 

You may, however, be too strenuous upon this 
point. Irregularity and tardiness must not be reckoned 
as a crime or placed in the same class with falsehood, 
theft or swearing. A certain amount of irregularity is 
excusable, and sometimes perfect attendance is 
attained at too great a sacrifice of more important 
matters. A teacher who had worked up great enthusi- 
asm in this matter once confessed to me: 'T have 
overdone this matter. If a child comes in late the 
other pupils are ready to point their fingers at him. 
If he should tell me a lie they would think nothing of 
that." She also added: "When I have called the 
roll and it is evident that everyone is here they settle 
back in their seats, as much as to say, 'We have done 
our duty, you must do the rest of the work.' " When 



Habits 151 

you can rid the school of all inexcusable irregularity, 
that is sufficient. 

(4) Obedience. — It may not have occurred to you that 
obedience or disobedience is a habit with most chil- 
dren. Some of the children come from homes where 
such a thing as disobedience is never thought of, 
others from homes in which disobedience is the rule, 
and obedience the exception. Great allowances are 
to be made, and progress in the right direction will 
be slow, but by some means obedience must be exacted 
from every pupil. A director once said to a teacher 
who had just signed his contract, "You will find us 
all ready to sustain your authority, but when you 
find that you cannot govern the school come to us 
and resign. We will cancel the contract, but this 
community cannot afford to tolerate a disobedient 
school. " 

To allow disobedience is the surest road to making 
the child unhappy. If you would have children love 
and respect you insist upon prompt, cheerful obedi- 
ence. If you find it necessary to say to a child, "You 
must do that," or '"You must not do so," then you 
lower your authority unless you see to it that he obeys. 
For this reason it is better sometimes to put your 
commands in the form of suggestions and leave much 
to the discretion of the child. This is a stronger foun- 
dation upon which to build a permanent habit of 
obedience, and that is what we really desire to do. I 
grant that obedience must sometimes be enforced, and 
that disobedience must be punished. But the child 
who obeys simply because the teacher or the parent is 
stronger than he, is not forming that habit of obedience 
which will make of him a "law-abiding citizen." An 
old writer says: "Trv to make obedience honorable, 



1^2 Co mm 71 Sense Didactic s 

and disobedience dishonorable, and tlius lift your 
school into the atmosphere of right actions." 

(5) Civility. — The teacher who would win civility 
from the pupils must himself be civil. Civility is in 
the spirit of the act. Do not be too ready to take 
offense at rudeness or boorishness. Perhaps the child 
does not know any better, and by acting out his nature 
gives you an opportunity to inculcate better manners. 
In this respect our schools are deficient. It is very 
different in the schools of the old world. There 
children are taught to respect those who are older or 
who are placed over them as rulers or teachers. 

Civility includes politeness to others; it is the oppo- 
site of rudeness which children should be taught to 
shun. It includes good behavior on the street and in 
public places. It is an acquisition to be able to sit 
erect and quietly while making or receiving calls in the 
parlor. In fact civility is the fine art which marks the 
real lady or the perfect gentleman. 

In going from one school to another, I overtook a 
little Norwegian boy with a large bundle of clothes on 
his head. He evidently had been in the country but a 
few weeks. I told him to jump in and I would carry 
him. At a certain corner he said, "I gets out here." 
After he had taken out his bundle he took off his cap 
and with a very graceful bow he said, "You are very 
much obliged to me, sir, for this ride." The action 
was the purest civility I ever saw. 

There are additional habits, moral in their nature, 
which it is your duty to foster in the child. Among 
them are temperance, purity, reverence, self-control, 
respect for the rights of others. Then there also are 
intellectual habits, as attention, concentration, study, 
application, diligence, industry. Bear in mind that 



Habits /jj 

every child comes to you confirmed in these habits or 

in their opposites, and that the only way to eradicate 

a bad habit is to introduce some motiv^e as an incentive 

for forming a better one. Bear also in mind contin- 

uall3^that you cannot inculcate in a child a habit which 

you yourself do not constantly exercise. An English 

writer says: "A child more readily attempts what he 

sees done than obeys a command addressed to it in 

words." (Seepage 20.) 

I cannot better illustrate what I want to say than 

by asking you to read carefully the following: If you 

are to attempt anything in the way of 

Nature Studies, the basis of which is obser- ^^^^ ^^^^^^ 
' , oj seeijig 

vation in your school, as I hope you will, things. 
keep in mind the following directions: 

(a) Choose your subjects with reference to awaken- 
ing an interest and imparting information. Some 
authors will tell you that to impart information is not 
one of the objects to be sought in Nature Study. If 
that be true then Nature Study has no place in the 
school curriculum. 

(b) Connect les'sons so as to form a series, each 
lesson depending upon the others. This gives an 
opportunity for review and restatement of facts and 
principles. 

(c) Make thorough and exhaustive preparation on 
your own part. A more careful preparation is 
demanded of the primary teacher than of one in the 
higher grades. 

(d) On the one hand avoid sameness, deadness, 
routine, ruts; on the other hand avoid scatteration, 
aimlessness and a wasteful use of words. 

Nature Study embraces all things pertaining to the 
laws of the natural world. In Waymarks for Teachers 



1^4 Commo7i Sense Didactic s 

the author says: "The immediate ends in view in the 
nature lesson are observation, knowledge, expression 
and enjoyment." Among the many points to be 
emphasized in Nature Study, I commend the following, 
written by Margaret W. Morley: 

"There is nothing in nature more delightful than the 
mutual helpfulness of plants and insects, and the 
helpfulness of the different parts of plants to each 
other. Help the young people to feel this mutual 
helpfulness and to know that it is as true and as impor- 
tant as the mutual 'struggle for existence' about which 
so much has been written of late. In fact so much 
stress has been laid upon the struggle that many people 
as a result of their scientific study have come to hold the 
untrue and depressing view that all life is a carnage. 
This is but half the truth, there is another side to life, 
and that is the side of mutual helpfulness." 

Nature Study also should be made to have a strong 
bearing upon the ethical training of the child. He 
^ , should be taught in school to care for the 

Study and domesticated animals about the home, to 
ethical \q^^ and protect the birds that frequent the 

orchard and garden, the songsters of the 
wood, and the squirrels that make their nests in hollow 
trees or in the stone wall by the wayside. Sometimes 
the boy whom you call "bad" has the most intimate 
acquaintance with Dame Nature and the denizens of 
her secret haunts. Possibly the key which unlocks the 
dull intellect of the "stupid child" may be found in 
the keen delight which he manifests in telling you of 
the marvelous cunning and ingenuity of beasts and 
birds which he has discovered while wandering in the 
v/oods or fishing in the streams of the neighborhood. 

Take into the schoolroom with you as much as pos- 



Habits 1^5 

sible of the light and freshness of out-door life. Be 
patient with the boys and girls if at the beginning of 
the year they are a little restless under the restraint 
of school. If they seem to forget some things which 
they have studied in the books, see if they have not 
learned other things during their rambles in the fields 
and woods which they will always remember. Nature 
is a skillful teacher, and her books are wonderfully 
illustrated. She keeps a summer school, and counts 
her pupils by the thousands. To despise her teachings 
is to despise also the little ones whom she has taught. 

Do not overlook the necessity of cultivating in 
children the importance of seeing things as they go 
along through life. A gentleman of liberal education 
was one day visiting a farmer. He took occasion to 
question the son, a lad of fourteen, in some of the 
common branches and expressed his astonishment at 
the boy's want of knowledge. A day or two afterwards 
they were riding along a country road and the boy 
commented upon the crops as they rode by the fields. 
"That corn won't pay for gathering. The man did not 
know how to cultivate it." "Hold on here; that is a 
fine piece of corn. It beats anything I have seen." 
Then he handed the reins to the gentleman, jumped 
over the fence and disappeared. Pretty soon he came 
back. "That is a great field. I'll bet it will go 
seventy-five bushels to the acre." "Why," said the 
gentleman, "you do know something after all." The 
boy replied without any impudence in his tones, "Yes, 
and you would know as much as I do if you would keep 
your eyes open." , 

Patriotism is an emotion, a feeling which prompts to 
action whenever the welfare of the community in which 
we dwell is concerned. Some one says very truly: 



1^6 Common Sense Didactics 

"Just as all duty in the eyes of the believers is duty 
towards God, so to one who loves his country all duty 
becomes a duty to it." There is as much 
Patriotism, patriotism in endeavoring to elect a compe- 
tent man to the ofiFice of school director as in 
choosing the president of the United States. The man 
who lays aside all business for the time in order that 
he may go to the polls to vote is a patriot, just as much 
as he who shoulders his gun and goes out to face the 
enemies of his country's flag. 

It is right that children should be taught to salute 
the flag, to reverence our great names in history, and 
to be proud of our heroes, both the living and the 
dead. But they should be brought to see that obedi- 
ence at home and in school leads them to become law- 
abiding citizens; that idleness in childhood is the 
beginning of thriftlessness in manhood; that criminal 
life in the world originates in a disregard in youth of 
the rights of others. In a word, true patriotism can 
best be taught by a personal appeal to those qualities 
which ought to characterize American citizenship. 

It makes but little difference to the school whether 
alcohol, in a technical sense, is classed by scientists 
as a poison or a food. As teachers we are 
temperance. ^^^ called upon to determine the question. 
The ends which we hope to reach through 
temperance instruction are to inoculate the mind of the 
child with true ideas of the effects of alcohol, tobacco 
and narcotics, upon the physical frame, and to con- 
vince him that total abstinence is the only path of 
safety if he desires success in the business of life. By 
continuing this instruction from year to year we may 
hope to shape such habits of abstinence as will render 
him secure against those temptations which are leading 



Habits 157 

so many American youths to destruction. It is every- 
thing to implant right ideas, to establish right habits of 
moral action early in life. It is of equal importance 
to guard the child against the introduction of wrong 
ideas and the adoption of wrong rules of conduct. 

In its persistency error has a seeming advantage over 
truth. As with the camel and the Arab, let a false 
idea of right, or duty, or manhood once fairly insert 
its head, with the owner's permission, and it will not 
rest until it possesses the whole tent. 1 believe that 
the teacher who does not inculcate the doctrine of 
total abstinence as the only path of safety falls far 
short of his duty. 

Again, the enormous evils which these habits inflict 
upon individuals are multiplied many-fold because of 
the relations which men bear to their families and to 
those with whom they have business interests. The 
evils thus produced invade every station in life and 
affect all classes of men. 

The electric chain of suffering, as of pleasure, 
touches every point. All nature has a common lan- 
guage. Speech 'and thought are not confined to 
animate things. 

The palm-tree dreameth of the pine, 
The pine-tree of the palm. 

Through the effects of these habits broad acres have 
remained unproductive, and mines undeveloped; ships, 
precious with freight of life and wealth, have gone 
down in mid-ocean, and vast enterprises have mis- 
carried; houses have been burned, and the most revolt- 
ing crimes have been committed. Because of their 
influence men, fitted by nature. 

To sway senates with a statesman's soul, 
Or look on armies with a leader's eye, 



i§8 Co mm 71 Sense Didactic s 

have fallen like the "Son of the Morning"; and the 
poet, most gifted of the children of God, has for- 
feited his high estate; 

And his soul from out that shadow that lies floating on the floor, 
Shall be lifted nevermore. 

Emphasize the fact in all your teaching that the work 
of the world is to be done by sober men. The large 
^ , ,, railroad corporations have stringent rules 

work done forbidding their employes to use intoxicants 

by sober jj^ ^^y form or even to be known as visiting- 

men. -^ ^ 

places where these are sold. Other corpora- 
tions are equally careful to fill important places of trust 
or responsibility with men whose habits are strictly tem- 
perate. These and other facts of a similar nature 
brought to the notice of an ambitious boy will make a 
lasting impression and will strengthen him in his 
determination to avoid the use of intoxicating liquors. 

But zeal in instruction must be thoroughly tempered 
with knowledge or it will prove a sword without a hilt. 
It is for this reason that the instruction should be made 
a matter of careful study. 

In some districts a few injudicious words would 
raise a tempest of opposition that would nullify all the 
efforts of the teacher. In others an unguarded or 
rash statement would bring the whole matter into 
ridicule. The daily preparation for this instruction in 
temperance hygiene will draw upon the teacher's 
resources and knowledge as no other subject can. 

As paths exist in which the blind have no sight to 
walk, so there are matters concerning life and death in 
which the ignorant have no right to instruct. 

So also concerning the spirit of this special instruc- 
tion I desire to say this: Pains must be taken to insure 



Habits i^g 

for the truth an impartial hearing. The teacher must 
confine himself to simple statements of undisputed 
facts. Such illustrations may be given as jy^^ spirit 
will deepen the impression upon the mind. ofinst7'uc- 
But the instruction must in no sense take ^^^^' 
the form of a temperance lecture. Many children 
come from homes in which much that might be said 
would at once be made a personal matter. Not one 
of these little ones should be offended by this instruc- 
tion. It is bad enough to be a drunkard's child without 
having it brought to the notice of the school. 

The evils which arise from the use of tobacco call for 
special action on the part of the teacher. Many boards 
make a regulation that tobacco in every 
form must be excluded from the school and habit'! ^^^^ 
school grounds. Such a rule is reasonable 
and you should see that it is rigorously enforced. But 
the tobacco habit cannot be broken up by suspension, 
expulsion or whipping. Bring these points to the 
notice of the boys: (i) It is expensive; (2) It is 
injurious to the development of the growing boy; 

(3) Figures show that those who use tobacco very sel- 
dom rank high in scholarship at college or university; 

(4) No athlete training for a contest is allowed to use 
either intoxicating liquor or tobacco; (5) It is an 
uncleanly habit and renders the person addicted to it 
an unpleasant -companion in society, especially of 
ladies. Try the power of persuasion, argument and 
example, and never despair of success as long as the 
boys are under your care. 

We must not fail, however, to invoke the most 
potent of all influences — that of example. "Thou 
therefore that teachest another, teachest thou not thy- 
self?" "Thou that preachest another man should not 



i6o Common Sense Didactics 

steal, dost thou steal?" "Wherefore if meat make my 
brother to stumble, I will eat no flesh forevermore, 
that I make not my brother to stumble." 

The man who wrote these words was one in whom 

Persuasion and belief 
Had ripened into faith, and faith become 
A passionate intuition. 

Go into the streets at nightfall and notice the boys 
who are loitering about the corners with cigars in their 
mouths; note in your schoolrooms the number whose 
clothing is saturated with the perfume of smoke, or 
whose pockets are filled with tobacco which they are 
too willing to distribute among their mates. And then 
before you tell them that tobacco unstrings the 
nerves, deadens the brain, stunts the growth, weakens 
the muscles, aggravates and often causes diseases of 
the heart, ask yourself this question in the watches of 
the night when men's thoughts turn inward: "Is it 
true that there is not enough of the grace of humanity, 
of the strength of Christian manhood within me to give 
up this habit for the sake of these boys with whom my 
duty brings me in daily contact?" 

The following very simple classification of habits 
may be found useful as an aid to memory: 

Under the head of Training we may include the per- 
sonal habits — cleanliness, order, regularity, obedience, 

e civility. These include what is usually 

iamninary. ... . 

called discipline, and form the basis of 

moral training. A neglect of any one of these impairs 
the usefulness of the school. 

Under the head of Instruction we may place these 
moral habits — truthfulness, reverence, purity, indus- 
try, self-respect. Education includes these mental 
habits — silence, observation, concentration of thought, 



Habits i6i 

acquirement of knowledge, reproduction of knowl- 
edge. 

It is first a little thread, then a string, then a cord, 
then a rope, and last a strong cable; such is the forma- 
tion of a habit. There is need that in breaking up a bad 
habit in the child, the teacher should be ready to lend 

A Helping Hand. 



Quotations Worth Reading 

HABITS. 

As without instinct the infant could not live to become a man, 
so without habit man would remain an infant through life, and 
would be as helpless, as unhandy, as speechless, and as much a 
child in understanding at three-score as at three. 

—Reid. 

If the period of habit-making has been passed wisely in the 
home the period of will-training will present fewer difficulties. I 
cannot emphasize too much in the matter of will-training the 
advantages of the country home. The good will is there more 
easily fostered because the boy is from the start an active member 
of the firm. 

— IVilliam Byron Forbush. 

Habit is the tendency to assume or to be what has once been, 
and is consequently one of the most powerful agencies in edu- 
cation. 

—Gill. 

Not a leaf waves in the wind, not a drop of dew comes spark- 
ling out of nothing co gem the bladed grass with orbs of light, 
without telling something to those fitted to receive it. 

— Thring. 

In brief, a habit is established by repeatedly performing an act, 
and it is destroyed by refraining from the performance of the act. 
In no other way can a habit be established and in no other way 
can a habit that has been formed be removed. Simply to refrain 
from action may not be sufficient for a life, but whatever else is 
done nothing will break down a habit but refraining from the 
action which has become habitual. 

—Smith. 

Moral education is a training in habits, and not an inculcation 
of mere theoretical views. 

— William T. Harris. 



i62 Commofi Sense Didactics 

THE HABIT OF SEEING THINGS. 

Questioning is not, therefore, merely one of the modes of 
teaching, it is the whole of teaching; it is the excitation of the 
self-activities to their work of discovering truth, learning facts, 
knowing the unknown. Nature always teaches thus. But it is 
necessary that every question shall be in the interrogative form. 
The strongest and clearest affirmation may have all the effect of 
the sharpest interrogation if the mind be sufficiently aroused to so 
receive it. An explanation may be so given as to raise new 
questions while it answers old ones. 

—John M. Gregory. 

Pupils can learn to read by reading about real things which are 
in close touch with their daily lives, and which they wish to 
remember, as well as by reading about remote, fictitious things 
which they cannot and do not care to remember. First-hand 
knowledge should be learned before any other. 

—Hiram H. Shepard. 
PATRIOTISM. 

The study of literature again has its value as a training in 
patriotism of the honorable and reputable kind as we shall see by 
inspiring a rational love of country through a respect for its great 
past and for great common possessions. 

—P. A. Burnett. 

There is no such inculcation of patriotism among our children 
as among the children of some other lands. If I had my way I 
would hang the flag in every schoolroom, and I would spend an 
occasional hour in singing our best patriotic songs, in declaiming 
the masterpieces of our national oratory and in rehearsing the 
proud story of our national life. I would attempt to impress upon 
all the supreme value of their inheritance, and the sacred duty of 
transmitting it untarnished and unimpaired, but rather broadened 
and strengthened to the millions who will follow after. 

— A ndrew S. Draper. 

Really patriotism in a democracy is something altogether apart 
from war and the memories and rumors of wars, and in America 
it is something imaginably apart from gunpowder and the army, 
and Fourth of Julys and Memorial Days. This fact the public 
school should teach and compass. 

—Rabbi Charles Fleischer. 

TEMPERANCE HABITS. 

It is a significant fact that men training for athletic contests 
(no matter what their ordinary habits or principles) let alcoholic 
drinks alone. One of the famous pugilists said: "I'm no 
teetotaler, but when I have business on hand there's nothing like 
water and dumb-bells." 

— Colton. 



Habits i6j 

"The State Demands the Moral Education of the People as the 
Safeguard of Order, Liberty and Progress." 

—Motto of Boston's Public Library. 

Such a young man reverences the divine skill and wisdom by 
which his physical frame has been, so fearfully and wonderfully 
made, and he keeps it pure and clean as a fit temple for the living 
God. For every indulgence of appetite that would enervate the 
body or dull the keen sense or cloud the luminous brain, he has a 
"Get thee behind me!" so stern and deep that the balked Satans 
of temptation slink from behind him in shame and despair. 

—Horace Mann. 

Look not thou upon the wine, when it is red ; when it giveth 
his color in the cup; when it moveth itself aright. At the last it 
biteth like a serpent and stingeth like an adder. 

— Prov. xxiii: ji, J2. 
THE TOBACCO HABIT. 

Here is something that may be used as a first-class memory 
gem. Write it in large letters on ycur board and then ask the 
children what they think about it: 

"I am not much of a mathematician," said the cigarette, "but 
I can add to a man's nervous troubles ; I can subtract from his 
physical energy; I can multiply his aches and pains; I can divide 
his mental powers; I can take interest from his work and discount 
his chances of success." 

At any rate I hope the time is coming when the good taste of 
teachers and a regard for personal neatness and the comfort of 
others shall present motives sufficiently strong to induce them to- 
break away from a practice at once so unreasonable and so dis- 
gusting — the use of tobacco. 

—Page. 

The cigarette has been found to be even more harmful than 
the other forms of smoking. It not only becomes a habit that it 
is hard to abandon, but the very failure which so many make in 
their efforts to quit its use shows ^.oo plainly that it undermines 
the power of self-control, and so is a weakening of that vigor of 
trained will, of that mastery of self, which is a part of the 
physical as well as of the intellectual welfare and prowess of 
manhood. 

— Selected. 

Many boys seem to think it is manly ; they wish to do as others 
do. It is not manly to imitate any one. Do nothing simply 
because some one else does it. To do this is to be a slave to be 
led. And one bad feature of t:he tobacco habit is that one makes 
himself a slave to the weed. 

—Colton. 



i6d Co7nnton Se?ise Didactics 

Questions for Examination 

/. What is habit? 

2. Name five personal habits. 

J. What do you understand by the term Nature Study? 

4. What are the ends in view in this branch? 

5. Define patriotism. 

6. How is it best taught? 

7. What ends are to be kept in mind in temperance instruction? 
S. What is said as to enforcing obedience? 

9. What is said of the power of example in the formation of 
habits? 
10. Why should you cultivate in children the power of observa- 
tion? 

Suggestions Worth Thinking About 

/. Who was Emerson E. White? 

2. What habits have I of which I should like to be rid? 

J. In what book do you find the expression, "Gather up the 

fragments that nothing be lost"? 
4. Do you know whether your boys smoke cigarettes? 
J. Where do the boys in your school spend their evenings? 



CHAPTER IX 

SCHOOL GOVERNMENT 

In the King's Name 

We must be as courteous to a child as to a picture ; give it the 

advantage of the best light. 

—Oliver Wendell Holmes, 

School government is that ordering of the affairs of the school 
which is necessary to the attainment of its proper ends. 

—Henry Calderwood. 

Brain-spinners, who have never taught a child, might just as 
well go to bed and dream and publish their dreams, as prescribe 
what should be taught, and how, in total ignorance of the 
problems to be solved in teaching a child. 

^ —Edward Thring. 

From simply commanding he should proceed to explain the 
reasons of his commands ; from these again to the expression of 
desires and the manifestations of a generous confidence, and from 
these to the frequent option and discretion of the child, prepara- 
tory to the moment of giving him entirely into his own hands. 

•— William T. Harris. 

TO govern the school wisely is mainly to direct 
the activiJ:ies of the children into right 
channels; to restrain evil tendencies, and to encourage 
all which is good; to implant right motives, Govern- 
and in a word to form rather than to reform. ^«^^^^- 

It is preventive rather than curative. With this point 
in view government becomes only a means to accom- 
plish certain ends in the growth of character. 

It is true that there must be in the school rules and 
regulations which every pupil must observe, as in the 
family and the state there are laws and customs to 
which every good citizen submits. It is a great mis- 
take to abrogate all authority over children. "Thou 
shalt" and "thou shalt not" is part of God's plan from 

26J 



i66 Co mm 71 Se?ise Didactics 

which there is no escape. We shall fail in our purpose 
to make a good citizen of the child if he is left free 
to accept or reject as he pleases whatever truth or 
error presents itself to him, without regard to the advice 
or counsel of those in authority over him. 

The ends of school government are twofold: First, 
the establishment and maintenance of order in and 
about the school so that its affairs may be carried on 
with as little friction and disturbance as possible; 
second, the enabling of the child to form for himself 
such habits of self-control, such command over his 
passions, emotions and feelings that he may be pre- 
pared to meet the temptations, the labors and the 
trials of mature years. The first of these points we 
shall discuss under the head of authority^ and the sec- 
ond under that of infliiciice. 

Every one who attempts to control or direct the 
actions of another should be able to point out the 
source and extent of his power. He should 
^' also thoroughly comprehend its limitations 
so that he may not, through his assumption of power, 
bring his authority into disrepute and contempt. 
There can be no greater mistake made in school gov- 
ernment than for a teacher to keep his authority too 
prominently before the school. Such a course stirs 
up the worst emotions of pride and self-will, and tends 
directly to incite rebellion against all restrictions. 

The source of authority is in the law which singles 
the teacher out as one fitted to instruct children and 
youth, and places him in the schoolroom with that 
power to command and to to compel obedience, which 
it confers upon no other person except the parent or 
guardian. To this extent only, and because the 
education of the child, in which the state has a vital 



School Government i6y 

interest, cannot proceed without it, the law recog- 
nizes the authority of the teacher as equal with that of 
the parent for all school purposes. 

With the regular routine of the school the parent 
may not interfere. The daily program, the length of 
recitations, the methods of instruction 
adopted, the general order are to be such ^^^^ parent. 
as accord with the best judgment of the 
teacher. This must of necessity be so inasmuch as it 
would be impossible to consult the wishes and opinions 
of every parent in the district. 

If lessons are unreasonable in length, if rules and 
restrictions are such as to impose unnecessary restraint 
upon the child, if punishments are too severe, the 
parents have their remedy through an appeal to the 
school authorities of the district or city. If they wish 
to advise with the teacher they should be met half- 
way and listened to with respect. 

The law does not suppose that the parent surren- 
ders to the teacher all right to direct the education 
of the child, or that he loses his interest in the child's 
progress and welfare when he sends him to school. 
Only he may not dictate to the teacher or compel him 
to act contrary to his own reason and judgment. 
Neither may he intrude his complaints, or interrupt 
the daily exercises of the schoolroom, although he 
should always be a welcome visitor. 

The best results are obtained when the authority 
of the school and the home supplement each other 
and work along the same lines in exacting obedience 
to, and compliance with, reasonable rules. This is the 
point at which some teachers fail in school govern- 
ment. When once you gain the confidence of the 
people of your district in your manner of exercising 



i68 Co mm 71 Se?ise Didactics 

authority you have gained everything, when you lose 

it you have lost everything. (See page ii.) 

Do not then parade your authority continually before 

the school or the public. Rather keep it in reserve 

as something to be appealed to only when 

The aims of occasion requires it. Its exercise should be 
authority. ,ri.i''ii 

for the good of the individual, sometimes 

for the good of the school as a whole; never for the 

gratification of the teacher. This from Bain's Science 

of Educatio7i is exactly to the point: "It is understood 

that authority with all its appurtenances exists for the 

benefit of the governed, and not as a perquisite of the 

governor." 

There must be some source of authority in every 
school as there is in every community. But authority 
maintained by means of fear is heartless if not cruel, 
and falls short of its high purpose. Punishment may 
at times be necessary, but to resort to it frequently 
weakens the government of the school. 

The result of authority, however, must be obedi- 
ence, and obedience must be prompt, cheerful and 
hearty. Obedience which is compulsory is better than 
disobedience, but that obedience to rules and regula- 
tions which comes from a sense of right and a desire 
to do right is the kind which we should seek to develop 
in the child. 

Idleness is the prolific source of disorder. Good 
government in the school is based upon this truth. 
Give the child constant employment, awaken his inter- 
est in his books, stimulate his ambition to learn and to 
do and he seldom if ever is a source of disturbance. 

A quiet, unobtrusive and persistent exercise of 
authority should be marked by the following charac- 
teristics: 



School Cover 7iment i6g 

(1) Firmness without obstinacy. We are often 
told, very truly, that the teacher should not be strict 
one day and lenient the next, that the law character- 
should know no holidays, but should be '^Hf^jf 
imposed at all times alike. Nevertheless 

the wise teacher knows when discipline may be 
relaxed a little, when some indulgences may be 
granted, when authority may smooth its wrinkled brow 
and lay off the austere garb with which the law has 
clothed it. 

(2) Impartiality, yet regard to the personality 
of each child. What is a severe reprimand to one 
child is not adequate to correct the same fault in 
another. What is a reasonable punishment for a fault 
in one child may be altogether too severe for the same 
fault in another. 

The impartiality must consist in the motive which 
prompts the teacher. It is a difficult thing to make 
pupils understand why you discriminate in the treat- 
ment of different children. This led, in the old time 
school, to the custom of reading upon the opening 
day a set of rules intended to cover all cases and affix- 
ing to each a definite punishment. Thus, as a result, 
the teacher often found himself perplexed as to what 
to do, and sometimes, in order to be consistent, pun- 
ished when it did more harm than good. 

Do not make many rules until you find them neces- 
sary. The absence of rules is not the absence of law. 
Your wish should be regarded by your pupils as law 
to them for the time being. 

It is sometimes best to say, "I think I shall have 
to forbid that hereafter," but in such cases the children 
can easily be made to see the reason of your action. 
When you find it requisite to take such a step be def- 



I'jo Common Sense Didactic s 

inite in your requirements. The children in a certain vil- 
lage school were accustomed during the winter term to 
spend the recess in coasting down two successive hills. 
The teacher said to them one day when they were late 
in coming in from recess, "After this please confine 
your sliding to one hill." They were late again at 
the next recess, and when asked for the reason 
answered, "You didn't say which hill, and so we chose 
the one down by the store because that is the longest." 
(3) To be just to each and every one requires much 
thought and consideration on the part of the teacher. 

You will be confronted at times by these 
Justice. ^^^ questions: What is best for this child, 

and what is best considering its effect upon the entire 
school? You will frequently find that you cannot 
decide one of these questions independently of the 
other. Exact and even-handed justice in dealing with 
children must always be tempered with sympathy and 
mercy. A fault repented of should be forgotten, and 
every attempt to do better should be encouraged. To 
lend a helping hand or to speak an encouraging word 
to the erring child is often an act of the highest justice. 
And here let me add one other thought. Praise 
and censure should be bestowed with regard to justice. 

It is not what the pupil has accomplished 
^censure'^'^ that deserves praise, but what he has tried 

to accomplish. Not what he has failed to 
do, but what he has neglected to attempt deserves 
censure. Effort, not success, should determine the 
measure of reward. 

The teacher who is not alive to this point is in 
danger of committing some grievous mistakes. "Who- 
soever offendeth one of these little ones" is in danger 
of punishment. Scan closely the motives which seem 



School Gov ernme 7it lyi 

to prompt the child who fails to meet your require- 
ments. Are you careful to hold up the best motives 
before the children? Fear of punishment is no worse 
as a motive than undue love of self. Sometimes a 
whipping works less injury than flattering, coaxing or 
undeserved praise. The pleasure which comes from 
well doing and the approval of conscience are the 
highest motives and should be constantly in the mind 
of the pupil. How can I cultivate these two germs so 
that they may become permanent factors in life? This 
is the great question which confronts the teacher in 
school government. 

Cheerful obedience, respect for law and order, a 
hearty acquiescence in whatever is for the good of the 
entire number, are characteristics of a school which is 
well governed. The healthy atmosphere in which the 
children delight to dwell is not the product of brute 
force, but rather of the "combined reign of mercy, 
love and justice." There must be subjection on the 
part of pupils to the teacher's authority — authority 
which must never be questioned. This lays the foun- 
dation for subjection to law in after life. But author- 
ity must commend itself to the children as reasonable, 
and having no other end than their good. 

Authority, if rightly understood, requires that justice 
should be based upon reason. There is no room for 
impulse or passion. Do not be in haste to Reasoft 
threaten punishment or to promise favors. the foun- 
Let conditions and circumstances decide elation. 
what is best when the time for action is at hand. Jus- 
tice exacts that you keep yourself free to do as your 
judgment prompts you. Justice exacts also that you 
make a plain distinction between a fault and a moral 
offense. 



iy2 Co mm 71 Sense Didactics 

I have seen schools in which a tardy mark or a case 
of absence called forth more severe reprimand than a 
lie or an oath. The scholar who came in late had the 
finger of scorn pointed at him by his mates, but the 
one who told a lie and was corrected for it was pitied, 
not because he told the lie but because he was detected 
and punished. The unthinking teacher has committed 
many crimes in the name of justice. 

Children have a very keen sense of justice. Their 
hearts have not been hardened by contact with the 
rough world. When right intentions are met by a 
rude rebuff, and little misdeeds which have no evil 
purpose are magnified into crimes and punished as 
such, the child loses confidence not only in the justice 
of his teacher, but what is worse, in his own ability to 
do better. 'T have tried my best to please her to-day, 
and I won't try any more, " was the report made to her 
mother by a little girl who came home from her school 
one night in disgrace. An encouraging word, an 
approving smile, would have given her an uplift when 
she needed it most. 

A school journal of recent date in an editorial says 
that "thou shalt" and "thou shalt not" never made 
Necessity either children or men better; that on the 
of law and contrary, it has made multitudes of them 
worse. Then why did God put these words 
in the decalogue? We say reverently: "Is it pos- 
sible that He did not have the light of some of our 
modern philosophers, and hence did not realize when 
He wrote on the tablets of stone 'thou shalt' and 
'thou shalt not,' that He was thereby making multi- 
tudes of men worse?" Sincerely we believe that our 
American schools are receiving a great detriment by 
this kind of talk among teachers. 



School Govern ni e nt lyj 

We may philosophize in a fine way about making 
the child independent, free, self-governing, but we 
cannot lift him above the restraints of law and 
authority. Is that a poor kind of school or family 
government which does not do more than this for the 
child? We cannot banish desire or remove tempta- 
tion. It is a most excellent government which, as a 
result, brings the child up to that point where he has 
a hearty respect for authority, human and divine. We 
are told that authority is only an expedient, a means 
to an end. But authority rests upon law, and back of 
law is power. 

A fundamental principle of all government, and nec- 
essary to its existence, holds that there is somewhere 
a source from which emanates the ability and the right 
to reward good and punish evil. This principle must 
be recognized in the child's education. The will, that 
faculty through which freedom of choice is exercised, 
should be persistently strengthened and cultivated. 
But the moment we free the child or the man from 
all fear of consequences, from those considerations of 
duty which rest 'upon "must" and "ought," upon 
"shall" and "shall not," we leave him to become a 
prey to his evil passions. 

Confidence in the integrity and intention of the 
pupil is not inconsistent with the proper exercise of 
authority. No teacher ever exercised his 
authority when necessary more vigorously notmcon- 
than Dr. Arnold, the famous master of sistent with 
Rugby, and yet no man was ever more ^^^ on y. 
heartily respected and loved by his pupils than he. 
Never say to a child, "I have no confidence in you," 
unless you desire to lose your influence over him. The 
day the child discovers that you consider him a liar, 



1^4 Coinmon Sense Didactics 

or a thief, or the author of all the mischief in the 
school — in a word, when he discovers that he is under 
suspicion at all times and on all occasions— the sooner 
he is out of school the better. It is a question whether 
he is not receiving from the teacher more injury than 
his own presence can inflict upon the school. I have 
seen such instances many times, and my heart has 
gone out in pity to the child because the teacher in 
his wrath and vexation left him no place for repent- 
ance. 

The only other element to be considered in this 
connection is prevention. The evil habits which some- 
times defy all authority are of slow but 
tion^^^' continuous growth. They creep in unno- 
ticed and make their presence known at 
most unexpected times. There is always room in the 
government of the school for "the ounce of preven- 
tion." It is a competent reason to assign for any 
course: "I am fearful my pupils may acquire bad 
habits and I am anxious if possible to prevent it." 
Here is an opportunity for the rightful exercise of 
your authority. To form is far easier than to reform, 
but it requires much thought and study on the part of 
the teacher. 

Be sure that your eyes are always open to see, and 
your ears to hear; that your senses are on the alert so 
that you may forestall the evil and prevent it before it 
obtains a lodgment in your school. Richmond, in his 
late book, The Mind of a Child, says: "There is no 
easier method of education than that practiced by so 
many educators of the young, the method of letting a 
tendency develop into a fault and then punishing the 
fault; this is far more comfortable to ourselves than 
taking the trouble to turn and train the tendency in 



School Gov eminent 775 

its earliest stages. Punishment is an easy form of 
discipline, and we punish recklessly, bolstering up our 
consciences with the reflection that the fault must 
be eradicated, never stopping for one moment to 
inquire who is to blame for the fact that the fault has 
developed in the child at all." 

The discipline of the school falls naturally under 
two heads: an^a ?ige me nt ^r\d inanagefuent. 

The natural and efficient arrangement of the exer- 
cises of the school is the key to government and dis- 
cipline. It should be as simple and with as 
little machinery in sight as possible. Rules Arrange- 
and regulations should be made as occasion 
requires, and then only such as are necessary for the 
good of the school. 

The following are the characteristics of skillful 
arrangement: It should be simple, definite, syste- 
matic, practical. 

Under this head we name methods of seating the 
pupils, of calling and dismissing classes, the details 
of the daily program, etc. The latter — the daily pro- 
gram of work and ^tudy — must be carefully planned. 
For the first week make it provisional, and then change 
it as circumstances seem to require. Do not make 
many changes during the term, but occasions will arise 
when it may seem best to the teacher to change its 
order for a time or to remodel it altogether. The pro- 
gram should always be elastic rather than too rigid. 

In making the program a few general principles 
should be observed, (i) Regard should be had to the 
number of pupils, advancement, etc. (2) Care should be 
taken in assigning the number of minutes to be given 
to a class. (3) It may be possible to alternate some 
recitations; thus, history may be alternated with geog- 



iy6 Co mm 71 Sense Didactics 

raphy so as to give each subject five recitations in two 
weeks. (4) It is advisable whenever possible that a study 
period should follow recitation. (5) In arranging the 
program due regard should be had to the age of pupils. 
The recitation periods should be shorter in the primary 
than in the grammar rooms; in a mixed school they 
should be shorter for the younger children than for the 
older. (See page 82.) 

To be successful, management must be prompt, firm, 
earnest, impartial, genial, quiet. 

The management of the school requires both tact 
and skill on the part of the teacher. Tact, especially 
Manage- ^" dealing with parents and pupils, involves 
7nent. a large amount of common sense. Parents 

do not always see the faults of their children as you 
see them. Yet it is necessary to have the confidence 
and good will of parents if you expect to preserve the 
highest discipline in the school. 

The management should also be firm and unvarying. 
There must be the same spirit and the same require- 
ments every day of the term. That which is treated 
as an offense to-day must be an offense if committed 
to-morrow. 

Most teachers fail in these two points. They are the 
key to good government. Some one says: "School 
government consists in putting things in order and in 
keeping them in order." The first is arrangement, 
the second is management. 

Under the head of i?iflue?ice I wish to consider those 

things which aid the teacher in maintaining order and 

discipline with little, if any, show of author- 

njiuence. .^^^ The first of these is the public opinion of 

the school. Some one once asked John D. Philbrick, 

"How do you manage these boys so easily? There 



School Government ijy 

seems to be perfect order and yet little restraint." 
The answer was very brief, "By public opinion." In 
further explanation he added, "It is disreputable in 
this school for a boy to be disorderly or disobedient, 
and when one tries it is not necessary for me to pun- 
ish him. His mates attend to that; he can have no 
standing among them until he makes amends for his 
wrongdoing." 

A careful observance of the points already suggested 
in this lesson will naturally create among the pupils 
a public opinion on the side of good government. 
When that is the case then the teacher is left free to 
devote all his energy and strength to the duties of 
instruction. 

Foster throughout the school a healthy pride not 
simply in the school proper but in all things per- 
taining to it and to its reputation in the com- 
munity. 

Again, there is something in the doctrine of sugges- 
tion. In every school there are certain children who 
have not a strong bias towards what is Sup-p-es- 
right. Their inclinations are not positively ^^'on. 
evil; neither are they positively good. A suggestion 
which betrays a want of confidence on the part of the 
teacher, a suspicious look, an unkind word, or a bit of 
sarcasm will sometimes be sufficient to array the 
childish nature in open hostility to the teacher. 

The same is true of those suggestions which are 
calculated to arouse and stimulate the better impulses 
and emotions of the child. The aesthetical can be 
made to reenforce the ethical. Pictures on the walls, 
attire, cleanliness of person are very powerful aids 
through the suggestions which they create. 

A clergyman entering the home of a friend found 

13 



iy8 Co?nmo7i Sense Didactic s 

the mother greatly depressed. He asked the reason 
and she said, "You know that my oldest son perished 
at sea; my second boy is on his first voyage, and now 
my youngest has just informed me that he hopes to 
be a sailor. I cannot understand it." On the walls 
of the room there hung the picture of a beautiful ship, 
with all sails spread, under sunny skies, making its way 
through the foaming seas. "There," said the minister, 
pointing to the ship, "is the cause of your troubles." 

The degree of interest which the teacher manifests 
in everything which concerns the happiness of the 
pupils, as children count happiness, affects the con- 
duct of the pupils. "As long as we get our lessons and 
don't whisper," is the standard of right in the minds 
of many pupils. "They get their lessons fairly well 
and don't make me much trouble," constitutes the 
object of government and discipline as viewed by too 
many teachers. In the pupil's conduct in school can 
be seen as in a mirror his conduct out of school. He 
is actuated by the same impulses, the same motives, 
the same feeling in one case as in the other. In order 
to know the whole boy follow him on the playground, 
notice his conduct on the village common, at his 
games, in his own dooryard, his attitude toward his 
mates on the way to and from school; in a word, if 
you wish to govern the whole boy you must study him 
under all the conditions of boy life. 

Certain points are worthy of careful consideration. 

(a) The strictest impartiality should be observed in 
. dealing with pupils. Every child has a 

worth con- right to the best which the school affords in 
sidering. government as well as in instruction. 

(b) Scolding, nagging, faultfinding, ridicule are not 
proper means to be used in governing the school. A 



School Government ijg 

serious talk with individuals, or to the whole school, is 
legitimate, but there should be no element of cen- 
soriousness in it. The tongue is sharper than the 
switch. Whipping is the refuge of weak teachers, but 
scolding or tongue-lashing or ridicule is more cruel, 
and cannot be justified by any reasons whatever, 
(c) The entire school should never be punished for 
the faults of a few\ To deprive the room of the 
recess, or to detain every one after school because of 
the restlessness of some is never wise. If you are not 
sharp enough to single out the culprits let it ^o w^ith 
as little notice as possible. Do not encourage tattling 
or tale-bearing. Never question the child about the 
conduct of his mates. There are occasions on which the 
children may give evidence, but it is a point which 
requires great caution, (d) Praise, not flattery, is an 
essential element. Look for the good that is in even 
the bad boy, and encourage him to perseverance in 
welldoing. 

This chapter cannot be considered complete without 
some reference to rewards and punishments. Suspen- 
sion or expulsion-from school is to put the Rewards 
boy to the worst possible use. It is a con- and pun- 
fession of failure on the part of the teacher, ishvients. 
and turns the boy into a hero in the eyes of his fel- 
low^s. If you can make his parents see that the school 
is doing him no good, and that he would be better off 
at work learning a trade, or on a farm— that may be 
the right thing to do, but not a disgraceful severance 
of his relations with the school if it can be avoided. 

To strike a child is another confession of weakness. 
I do not say it should never be done, for on the con- 
trary, it is at times the only recourse. Read in the 
quotations at the end of this chapter what Page and 



i8o Co 771 in on Sense Didactics 

Wickersham have said on this subject. I commend 
their words to you as full of wisdom. Do not make 
up your mind that you will never whip a child. Wait 
and decide that question when you are brought face to 
face with it. You may never have to pass upon it. 
Read what Quick says about training children. There 
is much wisdom in his words: "Yesterday I was 
talking with a very skillful dog trainer. He often 
buys a dog for $i and after a fortnight's training sells 
it for $15. I asked him how he did it. 'Well, sir, it 
takes a deal of patience. You must never get vexed 
with a dog. I've known a lot of dogs spoilt through 
a man losing patience with them and giving them the 
whip at the wrong time.' " (See page 70.) 

Fretting at the pupil, complaining of him every 
time you meet his father or mother, talking about him 
to other pupils, mocking some defect, ridicu- 
mel/io§s, li"& some peculiarity, these you will avoid at 
all times. A young lady, herself a teacher, 
came to me in tears, saying, "We cannot prevail on 
my brother to go to school any longer, and he is very 
deficient in the common branches." Upon inquiring 
as to the reason she said, "He stutters and stammers 
over some words, or when he is excited. His last 
teacher made fun of him by trying to read like him. 
The children laughed at him, and now he can neither 
be hired nor driven to go again." It is the old story 
repeated of the thoughtless, not to say cruel, teacher 
who destroys much good. 

If you have Page's Theory and Practice of Teaching 
read the chapters on school government. I advise you 
not to use prizes in your school. At the very best their 
benefit is limited, not to say questionable. They 
are apt to arouse pride in the breast of the winner and 



School Gov eriime nt i8i 

disappointment and envy in those who fail. It is not 
always the most deserving who obtain them. The 
effect of the prize upon the entire school is generally 
bad. I would not attempt it. 

Of praise I wish to say this: Used at all times and 
lavishly it soon loses its power. Praise bestowed for 
real merit for overcoming difficulties or temptation 
should not be withheld. A smile, an encouraging 
word, shows the child that his efforts are appreciated, 
and stimulates him to persevere. To praise a child 
for doing well is sometimes the best way of bringing 
his mind to see what you want him to do. 

Teach the child to question his own conscience. Is 
this right or wrong? Is my conduct at all times such 
as my ideal man would require it to be? Then let him 
answer the question for himself, but always 

In the King's Name. 

Quotations Worth Reading 

government. 

Discipline is not the art of rewarding and punishing, of making 
pupils speak and be silent. It is the art of making them perform 
in the most appropriate, easy and useful manner all the duties of 
the school. 

—Selected. 

The want of order is the great master defect of nearly all 
schools. I know of no one thing which so powerfully counteracts 
the exertions of teachers as the want of good discipline. 

— Teaching, Its Pleasures, Its Trials. 

Children must be governed, not coaxed. Control within proper 
limits is natural and wholesome for them. No amount of implor- 
ing them to do right will ever accomplish the purpose, and it very 
easily becomes positively harmful. On the other hand restraint 
must not be carried too far ; we must remember that it is not the 
course which is the easiest for ourselves, but that which is most 
beneficial to the child which is to be followed. Mere quiet is not 
good order. 

—Joseph Landon. 



i82 Common Sense Didactics 

"Order is heaven's first law," and it is scarcely more essential 
to the harmony of heaven than it is to the happiness and success 
of the school. 

—David P. Page. 
A UTHORITY. 

In the next place there must be a standard of order, and this 
must be backed by authority ; for, of what avail are law or regula- 
tions without the ability to enforce their claims in case of any 
resistance or disobedience? 

—John Ogden. 

Discipline, therefore, in the formation of character extends its 
sphere of activity even into the setting forth of a lesson and into 
all the details of instruction. In teaching well or ill we encourage 
the formation of good habits or we check them ; we make the 
formation of bad habits more difficult or we make them inevitable. 
And by habits we must mean habits both moral and intellectual, 
for the two are inextricably associated. 

—P. A. Barneit. 

A disciple is one who follows ; a disciplinarian should be one 
who leads, not one who compels — and the man who can lead 
children truly is the man who possesses those qualities of mind 
which mark him out as superior to the "common herd," and a 
superior mind will always find a following, will always find other 
minds able and anxious to be led. 

— Ennis Richmond. 

A languid and dilatory yielding to repeated commands is rank 
disobedience. "Not as in my presence only, but also in my 
absence," must be the requirement, and nothing short of this is 
worthy of commendation. 

— Teaching, /is Pleasures, lis Trials. 

JUSTICE. 

It is wise sometimes not only to withhold the expression of 
suspicion, but to give some token of your confidence to the pupil 
who is troublesome. Intrust him with some errand involving 
responsibility, or assign to him some duty by way of assistance to 
yourself, and very likely you will gain his good will ever after. 

-David P. Page. 

Patience, diligence, quiet and unfatigued perseverance, indus 
try, regularity and economy of time, as these are the dispositions 
I would labor to excite, so these are the qualities I would warmly 
commend. 

— Hannah More. 

The difference in sensitiveness between children is very great, 
and when many are brought together to be treated as a school it 
requires the greatest care and judgment to regulate the incentives 
of pain and adapt them to these differences of individual character. 

— Francis B. Palmer. 



School Cover 71 me 71 1 i8j 

In all our schools there is too strong a tendency to hold tip a 
false standard of success before the pupils. The things which 
make for true manhood and true womanhood, which will con- 
tribute to the usefulness of the individual as a member of society, 
are lost sight of in the fierce ambition to obtain the mark neces- 
sary for promotion to the next higher class. 

— Iowa School Report. 
PREVENTION. 

If the child is to have an interval of leisure let it be in the play- 
room or ground, where relaxation is permissible, and even noise 
is not a sin. But let him have no intervals of leisure in school. 
There, and in school time, where play is not' permitted, let work 
be systematically prescribed, 

-/. G. Fitch. 

I never yet met with a boy — and thanks be to God I have taught 
many — who would be rude to a female earnestly and kindly 
seeking his welfare without attempting to crush that indepen- 
dence of spirit which is man's prerogative and which no woman 
has a right to crush. 

—Charlotte Elizabeth. 
SUGGESIION. 

It's all very well to say that a teacher should always have a 
kind manner, but at times when one feels irritable a kind manner' 
seems impossible, or at best a piece of hypocrisy. When one is 
not in the best of spirits there is some difficulty in keeping order 
wnthout a repressive manner. By custom one learns to avoid any 
breaking out of temper, but the master feels an undercurrent of 
sulkiness and the boys know this better than he does. 

— R. H. Quick. 

That government of the school which does not reach the 
conduct of the child out of school as well as when under the 
immediate eye of the teacher, is defective in its aim and in its 
results. 

—David p. Page. 

REWARDS AND PUNISMENTS. 

The true way and the safe way, in my opmion, is to rely 
mainly on moral means for the government of the school — to use 
the rod without much threatening if driven to it by the force of cir- 
cumstances, and as soon as authority is established to allow it to 
again slumber with the tacit understanding that it can be again 
awakened from its repose if found necessary. The knowledge in 
the school that there is an arm of power, may prevent any neces- 
sity of an appeal to it, and such a knowledge can do no possible 
harm in itself. But if the teacher has once pledged himself to the 
school that he will never use the rod the necessity may soon come 
to him to abandon his position or lose his influence over the 
pupils. 

— David P. Page. 



184 Common Se?Lse Didactics 

And yet the young must be taught to obey — their welfare, their 
success in hfe, the well being of society depend upon it. A school 
cannot be suffered to run riot. Order, obedience, respect for 
authority are lessons much needed by the American people and 
must be taught at all hazards in the family and in the school. If 
to "spare the rod" is to "spoil the child," the rod should not be 
spared. Better a government of barbarism than no government 
at all. 

—J. P. IVickersham. 

Love for the truth, a spirit of serviceableness, respect for 
sacred things, regard for the rights of his neighbor, integrity in 
dealing with his fellows, the cultivation of the conscience, growth 
of character in the direction of obedience to the precepts of divine 
law, these are the weightier matters which the true teacher keeps 
continually before her pupils. It is very necessary that the next 
generation should have right ideas of what constitutes success. 

—Iowa School Report 

Questions for Examination 

/. Define school government. 

2. What is it to govern a school wisely? 

J. Name some of the objects of school government. 

4. When are the best results obtained? 

5. Name some points which should characterize the exercise 

of authority, 

6. What is said of praise and censure? 

7. What points are considered under the head of influence? 

8. What is meant by the doctrine of suggestion? 

g. Why are not prizes to be commended as beneficial in their 
influence? 
10. State briefly the statements in reference to corporal punish- 
ment by Page and Wickersham in the quotations. 

Suggestions Worth Thinking About 

/. What does Holmes mean by saying we must be as courteous 

to a child as to a picture? 
2. To what extent can you dispense with rules and regulations 

in school government? 
J. What is the best course to pursue with persistently idle 

pupils? 
4. What do you think of Page's axiom, "The minimum of 

punishment is the maximum of excellence?" What limi- 
tations has it? 
J. What would you do in case an innocent pupil knows who is 

the author of some mischief but through a sense of honor 

refuses to disclose his name? 



CHAPTER X 

THE HYGIENE OF THE SCHOOL 

To Keep the World from Growing Old 

Not only "lying lips" but a dyspeptic stomach is an abomination 
to the Lord. 

—Horace Mann. 

Is there anything better in a State than that both women and 
men be rendered the very best? There is not. 

—Plato. 

Nature's discipline is not even a word and a blow, and the blow 
first ; but the blow without the word. It is left for you to find out 
why your ears are boxed. 

—Huxley. 

No perfect brain ever crowns an imperfectly developed body. 
When Michael Angelo reared St. Peter's dome in the air he made 
every stone beneath contribute not only to the use and beauty of 
the part he put it in but to the support and power of the dome. 

—Edward H. Clarke. 

WE COME in this chapter to the consideration 
of a subject of very grave importance. 
Hygiene, which concerns the laws of healthful being, 
is at the foundation of human happiness. ^y^^ fou7i' 
To be well and capable of endurance, to be dation of 
strong, whether it be to run a race or fight fj^aMiness 
a battle, to possess nerves which are not 
easily unstrung and muscles which through proper 
exercise have become hard and "firm like iron bands" 
is to be well fitted for active life. Add to these the 
clear brain, symmetrically developed; the cunning, 
skillful hand, and we have a foundation upon which 
we may base a moral nature which no temptation can 
swerve from the path of rectitude, and an intellect 

183 



1 86 Co mm 71 Se?ise Didactics 

whicti can devise and accomplish great things for the 
progress of mankind. 

There is no question but that too little attention is 
paid in our schools to those details which minister 
directly to soundness of body. Heat, light, ventilation, 
exercise, posture in recitation and at the desks are 
treated only as incidental matters, inferior in impor- 
tance to intellectual advancement and mental acumen. 

It is impossible for the mind to do its best work 
when it inhabits a feeble, diseased body. Blaikie, in 
How to Get Strong, says: "But a bright and uncommon 
head on a broken-down, or nearly broken-down, body 
is not going to make half as effective a man in the 
life-race as a little duller head and a good deal better 
body." More than this the body must be surrounded 
by right conditions if in effect it is to be a willing, 
competent servant of the brain. 

While the teacher is not entirely responsible for the 
general health of the school, yet it is a subject to 
which he should give constant and close 
er's part. attention. To a certain extent the pecul- 
iarities of each individual pupil should be 
studied with reference to inherited or predisposed 
tendency to disease of any kind; bodily defects should 
be carefully noted in order that they maybe corrected, 
or at least minimized as far as possible under the cir- 
cumstances. In fact the teacher must not forget that 
the physical growth and development of the child is 
the foundation of intellectual strength and moral 
stamina. 

John Locke wrote: "How necessary health is to 
our business and happiness, and how requisite a strong 
constitution, able to endure hardship and fatigue, is to 
one that will make any figure in the world, is too 



The Hygie7ie of the ScJiool iSj 

obvious to need any proof." The philosopher was 
wise, but no wiser than every common-school teacher 
ought to be. He merely states in his own language 
what common sense teaches us is true. (See page ii8.) 

The following points are placed before you nearly 
in the order of their importance: 

Very few schoolrooms are provided with artificial 
means of ventilation. Even in those in which some 
attempts are made in this direction the 
means used are not adequate to produce ^/^^^ 
the desired results. In the majority of 
cases teachers must depend upon such resources as 
seem most ready at- hand. 

But few teachers realize the necessity of a supply 
of pure air in the schoolroom. A child requires about 
2,500 cubic feet of air, and an adult about 4,000 cubic 
feet per hour. There should be at least 30 square 
feet of floor space, and 350 cubic feet of air space to 
each pupil. A schoolroom 22x33 feet, with a ceiling 
12 feet high, is usually seated for forty pupils. This 
gives over 200 cubip feet of space to each person, and 
when windows and doors are closed the air will be 
vitiated, or rendered unfit for breathing in less than 
ten minutes. 

Every teacher who has had experience knows that 
by the time school has been in session fifteen minutes 
the air becomes heavy and loses its vitality. This 
condition increases but is often endured until time for 
recess, although in the meantime pupils and teacher 
become drowsy and dull and the lessons drag. 

It is not alone the process of breathing which 
vitiates the atmosphere. Many of the children are 
uncleanly in person, and wear clothing impregnated 
with odors of the kitchen or the stable. In addition, 



i88 Common Sense Didactics 

the soft coal stove consumes its share of the oxygen 
and gives out its noisome gases. To this must be 
added the chaik-dust from the blackboards, and the 
dust from the mud and dirt which accumulate on the 
floor. At times the visitor, who comes from the clear 
atmosphere outside, finds it difficult to overcome his 
repugnance to the odors which greet his senses when 
he opens the door to enter the room. 

I call your attention to these things in order to 
impress upon you the necessity of providing some 
method of supplying fresh air for the pupils. How 
can this be done? In the first place, when you reach 
your school in the morning throw the windows and 
door wide open for a few moments. Let the children 
find the air sweet and fresh when they enter. Do the 
same when all the pupils have left the school at night. 
Do not let the foul air, the accumulation of the last 
hours of the afternoon, remain in the room until morn- 
ing. As far as practicable, without exposing the 
pupils, do the same thing at noon and at recess. Some 
one once said of a teacher by way of criticism, "She 
has got ventilation on the brain." I wish more of 
our teachers were afflicted in the same way. 

Sometimes the upper sash may be dropped a few 

inches with safety, sometimes not. In no case should 

the children be exposed to a draught of 
Methods of ,, • ,., .. ^ ^u • j i t-t. 

ventilation. ^^^^ ^^^ while sittmg at their desks. The 

watchful teacher will devise other ways of 
modifying an evil which cannot be entirely eradi- 
cated. For instance, raise the lower sash a few inches 
and fit a board closely under it. The opening thus 
created between the upper and the lower sash forms 
a fairly good ventilator. 

It is impossible to frame a scientific treatise upon 



The Hygiene of tlie School i8g 

ventilation in this chapter. My desire is to call the 
attention of those who may read this book to the 
necessity of careful observation and study of the entire 
subject. 

If as a teacher you are really in earnest and desire 
to have some means of ventilation afforded for your 
schoolroom ask your superintendent or director or 
some of your more influential patrons to read this 
chapter. You need their cooperation. 

There is no more important question before us 
to-day than the ventilation of schoolrooms. Under 
all conditions of life pure air is an absolute necessity, 
but when thirty, forty, fifty, or even sixty children are 
shut up in a schoolroom, many of them coming from 
homes where the bath-tub is a luxury unthought of, 
where often the garments are worn day and night and 
perhaps are unwashed for weeks, only the most com- 
plete forced ventilation can keep the air decently pure. 

The problem is intensified when we remember that 
to the impurities arising from the usual causes we 
must add those from catarrhal breaths, diseased 
stomachs, decayed' teeth, and uncleanly persons. It 
is a very liberal allowance to say that, in the average 
school of forty pupils where there is no forced ventila- 
tion, at the end of the first five minutes the air is unfit 
to sustain vigorous life. Yet in all my experience I 
have found comparatively few schoolrooms in the 
arrangement of which the supply of fresh air has been 
taken into account. This is as true in the city as it 
is in the country. 

Supposing that in order to convince yourself beyond 
all cavil that my statements are true you make a few 
observations; take an account of stock, as it were. 
Just before the close of school step out into the open 



igo Common Sense Didactic s 

air, but be careful to close the door behind you. Fill 
your lungs with the pure oxygen of out-doors, inhaling 
and exhaling two or three times; then step 
iration. back into your schoolroom. Possibly the first 
breath of the fetid atmosphere will make 
you sick or faint; but no matter, you will survive it as 
thousands have before you. 

Spare a moment to consider these facts. You are 
dealing with a matter of great interest to all concerned. 
You are not a chemist; you have no apparatus for 
ascertaining the real condition of the air in the room, 
but this is a test which is reliable and which any one 
can make. 

Here you have a room 23 feet by 28 by 12, heated 
by a vicious soft coal stove, and absolutely with no 
means of ventilation except by lowering the windows. 
This you hesitate to do because a blast of cold air 
slays like a sword. I say no means of ventilation. 
Possibly there is a hole in the ceiling 7 by 9 inches in 
size, or one of the same dimensions in the side near 
the chimney, which for ventilating purposes is of no 
practical use whatever. The hot air furnace is equally 
vicious unless well supplied with fresh air taken from 
outside the building and warmed before it reaches the 
schoolroom. In this case, if suitable outlets for the 
escape of foul air are provided, the furnace becomes a 
very effective method of heating the room. In this 
room you will sometimes have thirty to fifty pupils — 
two, often three, at one desk. If you happen to have 
a thermometer it will register possibly from 80 to 85 
degrees. Read carefully in the quotations the extract 
from the report of W. W. Stetson, of Maine, which 
treats of ventilation. It is applicable with slight 
modifications to village schools. 



The Hygiene of the School igi 

The cracks in the walls and in the floor are filled 
with the accumulated dirt of many terms; they are the 
best possible breeding place for disease germs, bacteria, 
or whatever name may be the most appropriate. The 
floors have not been washed for weeks, months, 
perhaps years. The desks and seats have not felt hot 
water since they were screwed into their places. The 
walls are black with smoke and guiltless of white- 
wash. If this is not true in all cases it is in too many. 

Pay watchful attention to the heat of the room. 
Your own sensations are not a sure guide. You are 
well fed and warmly clothed; many of your 
pupils are under-fed and thinly clad. You of heating. 
may be uncomfortably warm, while some of 
them are uncomfortably chilly. Watch the thermome- 
ter. If the mercury is below 68 degrees the room 
is too cold. If it is above 72 degrees the room is too 
warm for health or comfort. If your room is warmed 
by a stove maintain as steady a fire as possible. See 
that the room is evenly warmed when the session 
opens, and in ordinary weather you will not find much 
trouble in holding t^he temperature about 70 degrees. 
Perhaps the teacher will say that one person cannot 
attend to all these things. There is some truth in 
the suggestion. But "to keep school" is just as 
important as instruction or teaching. 

It will require but a moment to convince yourself 
that some parts of the room have less light than is 
needed on cloudy days, and that there are 
no shutters or curtains to shield the eyes of Care of the 
pupils when the sun is bright; that some 
seats and desks are too high, and others too low; that 
blackboards are placed between the windows where 
the light is as bad as it can possibly be, and that the 



ig2 Common Sense Didactics 

general arrangement of the room is in entire disre- 
gard of sanitary laws. 

This is a subject which calls for thoughtful attention. 

In many buildings the blackboards are placed without 

any reference to the light as it strikes them 

boards. ' fi^oi^ the windows. Much of our teaching 

to-day involves the use of the board. 

Take a little time during the day to observe what is 
going on in your schoolroom. Every program should 
provide for vacant periods in order that the teacher 
may observe and act intelligently. 

Go across the room and sit down beside that group 
of scholars. They are endeavoring to make out -their 
lessons from the blackboard. You can get an indis- 
tinct outline of the writing, and that is all. The 
pupils are squinting their eyes and twisting their 
heads and straining themselves to make out the wri- 
ting, but the light strikes the glazed, shining board so 
as to give them the greatest possible amount of 
trouble. The time is near when some of those chil- 
dren must be taken to an oculist to have glasses fitted 
to their eyes before the sight is permanently injured. 
The increasing shortsightedness is due very largely to 
the defective methods of admitting light, or to insuffi- 
cient quantity in certain parts of the room. 

Observe these two points: First, the lesson should 
be placed where it can be easily and plainly read by 
the entire class If necessary, duplicate it by writing 
it in different places. If this cannot be done, then let 
part of the class move temporarily into seats from which 
the lesson can be read without straining the eyes. It 
is very possible that you can dispense with some of the 
blackboard work, with profit to your pupils. 

In the second place, the hand writing of the teacher 



TJi c H y g ic n c of the School igj 

should be large, the letters well formed, and without 
any flourishes. I am fully convinced that at least one- 
half the troubles which affect the eyes of school chil- 
dren come from a wrong use of the blackboard. See 
the quotation from Professor Bergen at the conclusion 
of this lesson. 

The pupil who is nearsighted should be brought for- 
ward nearer his work. No child should be allowed to 
study with the sunlight shining into his face. There 
is sometimes danger from too much light, as there is 
from too little. I can merely touch upon this subject, 
but it deserves careful consideration. The day you 
observe that the child has any difficulty with his eyes, 
you should inform the parents, that the necessary 
steps may be taken to apply the correct remedy. 

Do not require pupils to study the fine print in the text- 
book, except under the best conditions as to light. 

There is an increasing tendency on the part of school 
boards to consult teachers whenever a change of books 
is contemplated. In such cases the follow- 
ing points should be.taken into careful con- text-book. 
sideration: In choosing text-books, those 
having the least fine print, other things being equal, 
are to be preferred. It is said, by those who have 
investigated the subject, that defective eyesight is on 
the increase among our youth. It is unquestionably 
true that poor paper, bad impressions, broken and 
worn type, and fine print in our books have had much 
to do with injuring the sight of school children. 

The paper used in all books should be thick and 
firm in texture, so as not to be transparent; it should 
be white, forming a sharp contrast with the black let- 
ter; and should be w^ithout any gloss to dazzle the 
eyes. The ink is a matter of im.portance; the type 

13 



ig4 Co7n7non Se?ise Didactics 

should be of a proper size and form so as to give a 
perfect impression; and the general arrangement of 
the page should be such as to render each letter and 
word legible without any conscious effort of the eye. 

The eyesight of the child is his most precious heri- 
tage; more precious even to the children of the poor 
than to those of the wealthy, as its use is one of the 
means by which they are to obtain a livelihood. A 
text-book which is not made in accordance with the 
latest scientific discoveries, calculated to preserve and 
strengthen this sense, should not be allowed in the 
schoolroom, no matter how excellent it may be in 
other respects. Such mechanical perfection is not the 
result of accident. To produce it requires expenditure 
of money, scientific research, and the employment of 
skilled labor. If you are asked by your directors to 
recommend text-books for adoption, pay particular 
attention to the points enumerated above. 

Under the head of physical culture I do not include 
gymnastics, athletic exercise, and exercises tending to 
develop the muscles and strengthen the 
^ti/turf body. You will find these treated of under 
another title. Physical culture has refer- 
ence to the growth of the body into that natural grace 
of form and movement which belongs to childhood. 
I instance only a few important points. You should 
pay very careful attention to the posture assumed by 
the pupils in walking, standing, or sitting. Those posi- 
tions which cramp the chest, induce round shoulders, 
or distort the spine, should be carefully guarded against. 

As you sit at your table, or, more to the purpose, as 
you stand at the end of the room, notice with care the 
positions the pupils take while at their desks. There 
is one boy who has slipped down under his desk until 



The Hygie?ie of the School ig^ 

his weight rests on the end of his spine. Another is 
bending over his work so as to compress his vital 
organs to such an extent that they cannot do the work 
demanded of them. Mark that boy moving uneasily 
in his seat, swinging his legs as they dangle in the air. 
His feet are six or seven inches from the floor. How 
would you like to take his place and swing your feet 
for hours at a time? 

^y and by his mother will take him to the doctor 
and tell him that Johnny complains that his bones 
ache and his feet are numb; that he is too tired and 
restless to sleep soundly as a child ought to sleep. 
The doctor prescribes a tonic and "take him out of 
school." Can you not change his seat and desk so as 
to remedy these evils, in part at least? 

Do you see that little girl writing at her desk? 
Observe that her arm is elevated so as to be at right 
angles with her side and that her left shoulder is cor- 
respondingly depressed. In a few months her mother 
will take her to the physician to be treated for curva- 
ture of the spine. Isn't prevention to be preferred to 
cure in such cases? Better that the lessons in penman- 
ship be put off to a later period, than that the child 
should be allowed to assume a position which requires 
the arm to be raised at right angles to the body as she 
sits at her desk. In many cases curvature of the spine 
can be traced directly to the writing lesson in school. 

The gymnastics practiced in school under various 
names and systems are useful in quickening the circu- 
lation and in promoting development of Gymnas- 
certain muscles. Practice them when the tics;ath- 
windows are open for ventilation, in con- 
nection with breathing exercises, or when the weather 
is too inclement for the usual recess. 



ig6 Com7no?i Sense Didactics 

I want, however, to caution you against the notion 
that anything can take the place of exercise in the 
open air when the weather is suitable. Possibly you 
will find that the school authorities have dispensed 
with the out-door recess and that the teacher has sub- 
stituted for it a five-minute gymnastic drill, which ii? 
a matter of exercise is about as beneficial as a long, 
deep, healthy yawn would be! I do not know who 
first suggested the idea of abolishing the out-door 
recess. Whoever he was, he was no friend to children. 
There is nothing that can fill the place of it. 

Baseball and football are excellent when under con- 
trol; but do not let them run riot among your boys. 
A victory in the athletic field is not the greatest 
honor the school can achieve, and is sometimes pur- 
chased at a fearful loss of time and interest in studies. 

All the games should be under the eye of the 
teacher. The recess is no time for hearing lessons or 
disciplining pupils. The recess is time for real play, 
and the children should be encouraged to enter heart- 
ily into their games. Of course, allowance must be 
made for city schools having no play-ground. But 
even in these schools the tension should be relieved by 
an intermission near the middle of each half day, at 
which time the pupils should be allowed to talk with 
each other, to move about the room, and to be, in a 
large measure, free from restraint. In this connection 
read in the quotations at the close of this chapter the 
extract from Francis H. Tabor. 

In every case where city water is not available, the 
schoolhouse well must have some attention. Pure 
water is absolutely essential to health. See to it that 
the school authorities look closely after this matter. 
Especially insist upon it that after a vacation the 



The Hygiene of the School igy 

well must be thoroughly pumped out before the chil- 
dren drink from it. This is a matter of grave impor- 
tance which is but seldom attended to. 
Keep the pails clean, and have them filled supply. 

with fresh water three or four times a day. Do 
not leave water in the pails or cups over night. When 
possible, see that the pails and cups are taken every 
week to some neighbor's house and cleansed with hot 
water; but if a janitor is employed, then it should be 
part of his work to keep all drinking receptacles 
scrupulously clean. 

Do 710 1 let one drink what another has left hi a cup, nor 
should the water remaining in a cup after a child has 
had his drink be thrown back in the pail. If any 
thoughtful mother provides an individual cup for her 
child, no other child should be allowed to drink from 
it under any pretense whatever. It would be much 
better to have individual cups for the entire school 
whenever it is possible. Often the teacher can bring 
it about with very little trouble and it is exceedingly 
desirable. AH these are little points, not often con- 
sidered worthy of notice; and yet a decent regard to 
cleanliness and health will prompt a conscientious 
teacher to see that such rules are carefully observed. 

It is a legitimate part of a teacher's work in the com- 
mon school to carefully guard against the entrance of 

contagious diseases into the school. This 

■i • . -rr , .,, Cotttagious 

you can do m two ways: If a child comes diseases. 

from a home in which such a disease as 
diphtheria, smallpox, or scarlet fever exists, even in a 
mild form, rigorously exclude him from the school. 
In case he has had such a disease and returns as recov- 
ered, demand a certificate from some physician that 
all reasonable precautions have been taken to prevent 



jg8 Common Seiise Didactics 

contagion from the presence of such a pupil in the 
schoolroom. This is not only your right, but it is 
your bounden duty as concerning the welfare of the 
community and of the children under your care. 

But more than this, you should exercise watchfulness 
over the children that you may detect the beginning 
of the disease. Headache, feverish condition, sore 
throat in any child will always justify the teacher in 
sending the case home with a note to the parents. 
Do not take any risks, but watch these points with the 
greatest care. Don't allow children to spit upon the 
floor, and avoid in all possible ways raising a dust in 
the room. It is not possible to introduce medical 
inspection in all the schools. For this reason it is all 
the more important that teachers should be acquainted 
with the symptoms of these diseases and able to rec- 
ognize an ailing pupil at once and report the case to 
the proper person. 

The choice of janitor for a building of two or more 
rooms is nearly as important as that of principal. 
Tanitors There should be a most friendly relation 
between him and the teachers in the build- 
ing. If they have the right understanding of their 
respective duties they may be mutually helpful. It is 
not best to delegate to him entire authority over the 
pupils on the school grounds, but the children should 
be taught to respect him, and when he reports disor- 
der or abuse of privilege the matter should receive 
immediate attention. 

Do not, as is sometimes the case, expect too much 
from the janitor, or impose unnecessary duties upon 
him. Whatever he has to do, see that he does it thor- 
oughly. Do not treat him as a menial, but interest 
him, if you can, in the welfare of the school. I once 



The Hygiene of the School igg 

said to a janitor who came to the office for supplies: 

"How is Miss getting on?" She was a new 

teacher and an experiment. "Pig-pen," was all his 
answer. He had no education except such as the 
Lord gives some people — good common sense. Upon 
investigation I found that when she "adjourned school" 
— she always used that term — the floor was littered 
with papers and refuse; the children were not required 
to clean their shoes, and a general air of untidiness 
was everywhere evident. There was more work for 
the janitor to do in that room than in any two other 
rooms in the building. 

Washing the floors and desks, sweeping, dusting, and 
building the fires is not all the work the janitor should 
accomplish. There are a thousand little things making 
for comfort and health and cleanliness in which you 
may ask his aid. A few things observe with care: 
Treat your janitor courteously; if you have occasion to 
find fault with his work, do it without any spirit of 
censoriousness; and when he does well let him know 
that you appreciate it. Possibly you may find occa- 
sion to lend a hel-ping hand in the work of keeping 
things clean. Read this from Ruskin — it is practica- 
ble: "I myself have washed a flight of stone stairs all 
down, with bucket and broom, in a Savony inn, where 
they hadn't washed their stairs since they first went up 
them, and I never made a better sketch than that 
afternoon." 

It is the janitor's business also, to care for the clean- 
liness of the outbuildings and closets. This you should 
require of him, and should take immediate notice of 
any abuse of these buildings by the pupils. Nothing 
should deter you from talking to the janitor about 
these matters, or from upholding his authority when- 



200 Co mm 71 Sense Did act 



ic s 



ever it seems necessary. Look to this point yourself. 
There is no excuse why every law of decency which 
prevails in all respectable homes should be violated, 
as it is, in the buildings to which our children resort 
when at school. Horace Mann once wrote: "A want 
of decency enforced upon boys and girls will become 
physical and moral turpitude in men and women." The 
doctrine of suggestion is applicable here. The inde- 
cent writing, the obscene pictures on the walls, may 
be springs of impurity whose waters will embitter the 
entire life of the child. (See page 146.) 

Pupils should be so trained that they need not ask 
permission to leave the room, but go out quietly as in 
^ ^ a well ordered home, attracting as little 

considera- attention as possible and returning as 
Uo7ts. quietly to their desks. Their reasons should 

not be questioned. In this matter you can safely trust 
their honor. The following extract is by William K. 
Fowler, state superintendent of Nebraska: 

"A teacher should permit pupils to leave the school- 
room when necessary, and she should be cautioned not 
to constitute herself the judge of the child's physical 
necessities, but she should use all reasonable means to 
reduce the number to a minimum. One teacher has 
adopted the plan of excusing during the first five min- 
utes after nine o'clock, while settling down and hang- 
ing wraps, pupils who think they may need to pass out 
before recess, and strange as it may seem, this almost 
entirely cures the evil of a string of pupils constantly 
going and coming. Pupils will not neglect play to 
attend to their physical necessities before school time, 
even with the tap of the bell five minutes before the 
hour to remind them." 

Do not allow yourself to be prejudiced against a 



T h e H y gi c ii e of the Sc Jiool 201 

hearty laugh on the part of the pupils. Sometimes 
join with them and enjoy it. It relieves the strain, 
and enlivens the school as nothing else can. From a 
hygienic viewpoint the atmosphere of our schoolrooms 
is too somber. Scowling and frowning should be 
buried in the same grave with nagging and scolding. 
(See page ^(i) 

Attention to the clothing of the children is also a 
part of your duty. No pupil should be allowed to 
pass from the heated atmosphere of the ^ ^ 

schoolroom into the outer air without some outside 
additional protection, in the way of cloth- 'ojraps. 
ing, for the head and shoulders. When school is out 
at noon or night, the pupils, especially the younger 
ones, should be carefully watched by the teacher to 
see that they are suitably prepared for the walk home. 
In cold weather they should be allowed to bring their 
wraps into the warm room to make their preparations. 
Everything which is done for their comfort tends to 
promote their health. Wet, damp clothing or outside 
wraps of any kind should not be allowed to hang in the 
room in which j;he children study. The steam and 
odor which come from them helps to vitiate the 
atmosphere and to render it unfit for breathing. 

W^orry has killed thousands of people. It is a kind 

of contagious disease for which no sure remedy has 

vet been found. It seems to be a great 

. . ^ Wo7-ry. 

sorrow that it is ever permitted to invade 

the realm of happy, cheerful childhood, or to cast its 

baleful shadows across the pathway of the ambitious 

youth. 

Whenever the child goes home at night tired with 

the restraint of the school and worried over lessons 

which must be prepared for the next da3^ when his 



202 Cofiimon Sense Didactics 

sleep is disturbed by visions of unlearned tasks which 
he seems vainly trying to master, then it is high time 
to call a halt. Either the lessons are too long or the 
subject is above his limited comprehension, or, as is 
often the case, he is stimulated to an unhealthy degree 
by the feverish desire to stand at the head of his class. 
It is in your power to remedy these evils by reason- 
able requirements and by holding up only proper 
motives before the pupils. That is not a proper 
motive which makes a pupil who has done his best 
dissatisfied with himself because some one else has 
done better, or makes a pupil who has not done his 
best satisfied with himself because some rival has 
fallen below him in class standing. (See page 29.) 

In regard to the assigning of lessons to be learned at 
home, very careful discrimination should be exercised 

by the teacher, "having due regard to age. 
Study health, and status" of the child. However, 

there is a change coming; the tendency is 
in the right direction, and the home life of the child 
will receive deserved attention. It would be better 
for the pupil if he had fewer studies, shorter lessons, 
more intense study during school hours, and more free- 
dom at home for general reading and for cultivating 
habits of helpfulness to others. The rules and regula- 
tions under which you work may not leave you an}^ 
right of private judgment, but they cannot destroy 
your right to think. The child who is compelled to 
spend all his time out of school on school work and 
who has no time for home duties is being deprived of 
the best part of his education. If you would have 
your pupils happy and healthy, greet them with smiles 
in the morning; take your sunshine with you when 
you go to your schoolroom. Don't nag and fret and 



Til e Hy gi e ne of tJic School 2oj 

worry the pupils over the little disappointments and 
difficulties of school duties, but send them home when 
school is done with the contented spirit of childhood, 
"... that through all the ages past. 
Has kept the n'orld from grozving old. 

Quotations Worth Reading 

ventila tion. 

Pure air means dearer brains and better lessons, and may 
determine whether or not a child shall gain a sufficient kno\yledge 
to assure his success in life. In every half day of school it is well 
to allow a short recess in which windows and doors can be thrown 
wnde open and the pupils sent out to get deep breaths of oxygen 
during play. 

^ ^ ■> —Selected. 

Dr. Franklin, in his usual humorous manner, but with his 
accustomed gravity, relates in one of his essays the following 
anecdote for the purpose, doubtless, of showing the influence of 
pure air upon health, happiness and longevity. "It is recorded 
■of Methusalem, whom being the longest liver, maybe supposed to 
have best preserved his health, that he slept always in the open 
air ; for when he had lived five hundred years an angel said to 
him, 'Arise, Methusalem, and build thee a house, for thou shalt 
live yet five hundred years longer.' But Methusalem answered 
and said, 'If I live but five hundred years longer, it is not worth 
while to build me a house. I will sleep in the air as I have been 
accustomed to do.''" 

— Ira May hew. 

There can be no doubt that very much of the complaint we 
hear of the injurious effects of school life upon children and the 
early breaking down and heavy death rate among teachers are 
due far more to unwholesome conditions of work than to the 
severity of the work itself. 

—Joseph Landon. 

It is often possible to see, especially in the case of young and 
delicate children, how a fresh, healthy appearance gradually dis- 
appears and gives place to a pale, ansemic color — a condition 
traceable chiefly to the impure air of the schools. 

— Kotelmann. 

The simplest and most effective form of ventilation in school 
buildings in rural communities is to have a cold-air box extending 
from an opening in the wall under the floor to a point immediatel}- 
beneath the stove. This air shaft should be as short and direct 
as possible. It should be at least 30 inches square for a single 



204 Common Sense Didactic s 

room building, and should be covered at both ends with a coarse 
wire netting and about one inch inside of this netting screens 
should be placed similar to those used in dwelHng houses to 
exclude flies. The opening beneath the stove should be provided 
with a slide which may be completely closed during the time the 
roomi is being cleansed or swept. 

The stove should be surrounded by a Russia iron jacket 
fastened securely to the floor, and extending above the top of the 
stove from eight to twelve inches. The sides of the jacket should 
not be at any point within six inches of the sides of the stove. By 
this very simple plan fresh air is admitted to the room in any 
required volume, and is passed near the stove in such a way as to 
be warmed before it passes into the room. 

The ventilating flue or chimney for school houses of one room 
should be not less than 30 inches square on the inside. The smoke- 
stack should be about S inches in diameter, and placed in such 
position in the flue as to be most easily connected with the 
heating apparatus. The register which opens into the ventilating 
flue or chimney should be about 28 inches square, and shouldd be 
covered with a coarse wire netting, bordered by a simple mould- 
ing on the outside. This opening should be near the floor. 

— W. W. stetson, 
CARE OF THE EYES. 

Direct sunlight should not fall on the eyes or work of the pupils, 
as it will irritate the retina. To prevent this school windows 
should have means of protection either on the outside or on the 
inside. 

— Kotelmann. 

Do not let children bend over their desks; still, remember that 
the short-sighted child cannot sit up and see his book on a flat 
desk. To save children from becoming short-sighted prevent 
them from using their eyes too long and too closely on near 
objects. The boy should sit up well, with his head upright and 
his eyes at least twelve inches from his book. 

^Francis Warner. 

BLACKBOARD AND TEXT-BOOK. 

The Position of Blackboards. — The blackboards should be on 
the inner wall of the room, where the greater amount of light will 
fall upon them, and they should be of a dull black color. The 
principal cause of defective eyesight in school children is no 
doubt traceable to improper lighting of the room, which may be 
either excessive light or deficient light or light coming from' the 
wrong direction. The position of the blackboards and their 
frequent use for copying exercises while the child is at his desk 
requires rapid changes in the accommodation, which is also a 
factor in producing defective eyesight. Another factor, inde- 
pendent of the arrangement of the schoolroom, is the use of 
books printed with defective type or with too small a type. 

— /. Y.Bergen. 



The Hygic7ic of the School 203 

Through the sense of sight the mind has its broadest field of 
knowledge. The eye is the soul's most perfect wmdow, as it 
seeks to scan this outer world as a wonderful mechanism, and m 
its interdependent movements. 

^ —Lewis Ransovi Fiske. 

PHYSICAL CULTURE. 

There are certain negative duties which are self-evident. 
Teachers should at least protect their pupils against impure air 
too lono- confinement, over-work and the deadening effects of 
mental worrv, caused bv severe competitive written examinations. 
A great deaf more thanUis ought to be done, but in many schools 
not even this is attempted. _^^^^^ ^^^^^ 

At college I was taught the motions of the heavenly bodies as 
if their keeping in their orbits depended upon my knowing them, 
while I was in profound ignorance of the laws of health of my 
own body The rest of my life was, in consequence, the one long 
battle with exhausted energies. _^^^^^^ ^^^^^^^_ 

Parents and teachers should never forget that children are as 
susceptible to phvsical training as to intellectual or moral culture. 
And here especiallv they should be "trained up m the way they 
should go." Physical uprightness is next to moral. 

*=> •' — Ira Maynew. 

What we call skill in the arts consists of muscles and nerves 
trained to respond to some mental ideal. A habit is a facility of 
doing in some particular way amounting to a tendency. 

— Lewis Ransom Fiske. 

There should be the same intelligent and sympathetic super- 
vision and direction of the play activities of the pupils as of their 

^^^^^^^' ' -RuricN.Roark. 

This reminds us how many wells and cisterns that stand 
unused during the long vacation are supposed to be ready for use 
as soon as the pump-handle is fixed or bucket tied to the rope. 
Every such well or cistern ought to be thoroughly cleaned out 
before the pupils are permitted to use the water m it. Filth, 
and too often death, is at the bottom. Teachers, do not forget 
your responsibility in such matters. See that the board under- 
stands its responsibility also. __^ ^ ^^^^^^^ 

GYMNASTICS. 

There can be no comparison between a good healthy game— m 

which every muscle is suitably exercised and bram and lungs ]oin 

in the complete happiness of the honest laugh and the careless 

shout— and the "dead alive" military drill, or formal gymnastics, 

which, while developing many muscles abnormally leave the bram 

torpid' and the spirits depressed. . „ ^ a 

^ ^ —Francis H. Tabor. 



2o6 Commo?i Sense Didactics 

The following are the requirements for a good school desk; 
The seat should be of such a height that the feet may be placed 
evenly on the floor or foot rest, while the upper and lower legs 
make right angles with one another. Its height must, therefore, 
be somewhat less than the distance from the sole of the foot to the 
knee. 

— Kotelmann. 
HOME STUD Y. 

It is a question well worth the consideration of our school men 
and educational theorists whether the time has not come for the 
simplification of the courses of study and the reduction of the 
number of school hours in our gymnasia. 

— Kotelmann. 

Children under ten years of age ought to have no lessons 
whatever assigned for home study. Whatever time they can 
spare from play ought to be spent in reading suitable library 
books. Boys and girls from ten to twelve years of age ought not 
to have more than one lesson for home study. And girls from 
fourteen to sixteen years of age, in high schools, ought not to 
study more than one hour a day out of school. From ten to 
sixteen is the golden period for the reading of good books, and 
any course of school work that deprives pupils of time to read by 
keeping them all the time at the drudgery of text-book lessons is 
a mental wrong and a physical sin. 

—John Sweit. 

May we not reverently ask, What shall it profit a child if he 
gain the whole world of knowledge and lose his health, or what 
shall he give in exchange for his health? 

~G. Stanley Hall. 

TEACH THE CHILDREN 

Not to spit; it is rarely necessary. To spit on a slate, floor, or 
sidewalk is an abomination. 

Not to put the fingers into the mouth. 

Not to pick the nose. 

Not to wet the finger with saliva in turning the leaves of books. 

Not to put pencils into the mouth or moisten them with the lips. 

Not to put money into the mouth. 

Not to put anything into the mouth except food and drink. 

Not to swap apple cores, candy, chewing gum, half -eaten food, 
whistles or bean blowers, or anything that is habitually put in 
the mouth. 

—Clifton F. Hodge, in Nature Study. 

Questions for Examination 

/. What relation exists between a healthy body and a brain 

capable of doing its best work? 
2. How many cubic feet of pure air should be allowed each 

pupil per hour? 



The Hygiene of the School 20^ 

J. Give conditions of ventilating a schoolroom by various 

methods. 
^. What danger arises from too frequent use of the blackboard 

in giving instruction? 
J. Give the two cautions as to placing writing upon the board. 

6. Give the caution regarding the position at the desk in the 

penmanship lesson. 

7. What attention should be given nearsighted pupils? 

S. What is the teacher's duty as regards the clothing of the 

children when passing out of the room? 
9. What are proper and what improper motives as incentives 

to study? 
10. Why is it not well to crowd children so that they worry 

over their lessons? 

Suggestions Worth Thinking About 

/. Is there too much home study assigned in our schools to-day? 
^. The use and abuse of athletics. 

3. How can I improve my schoolroom so as to make it more 

healthful? 

4. What is the effect of pictures on the walls? 

5. How to make the out-doors recess beneficial to study and 

health. 



CHAPTER XI 

THE CULTIVATION OF TASTE 

Beautiful Gates Are for Beautiful Things 

We hear much in these days of the precocity of childhood. 
Josephus tells us that once in the siege of Jerusalem this golden 
gate which we have made the image of childhood, "was seen to 
be opened of its own accord about the sixth hour of the night." 
Some thought it was a good omen, "as if God did open to them 
the gate of happiness." Others thought it was very bad, "as if 
the gate were open to the advantage of their enemies." So in 
this critical time of ours not the least critical sign is this: that the 
golden gate stands open wide, that childhood is exposed and sen- 
sitive to new impressions and ideas. Is it for good or evil? The 
wider open the gate the better, if only the truth can be poured in. 
The more receptive the children's hfe the better, if only they w^ho 
train the children can thoroughly believe that there is a manly 
and beautiful religion of which the child is capable, and work 
with God to bring their children to it. 

— Phillips Brooks. 

THIS chapter has much to do with schools in the 
rural districts. Teachers in graded schools can 
read it with profit. To make a system of education 
Aims of effective it must be in accord with its envi- 
t he conn- ronments. The country school should be 
' thoroughly countrified; it should never put 
on metropolitan airs. It is not desirable that the 
country school should keep equal pace with the city 
system in the character and kind of studies introduced 
in it; but especially in nature studies and in elemen- 
tary science as bearing upon agriculture and rural life, 
the curriculum of the country school should be greatly 
enlarged. What the city school ought to do in fitting 
boys for the office or for professions, the country 
school must do in fitting boys and girls for the farm. 

2o8 



The CtLltivation of Taste 2og 

Just as soon as the farmers in the agricultural sections 
of the land find that the school is making the boys and 
girls more useful on the farm, more intelligent and 
more contented to remain at home, they will value it 
for its usefulness and rally to its support. Whatever 
has a tendency to make the boy more intelligent in 
farming matters or to make the life of the farm more 
attractive to him; whatever will make the daughter 
more useful in the home, or make the home a place of 
supreme pleasure to her, may legitimately be taught 
in the district school. 

The subjects taught in the country school ought to 
bear a close relation to country life. The great store- 
house of nature opens her doors and displays her treas- 
ures to the rural school. Seedtime and harvest, bud 
and flower, blossom and fruit, the care of animals, 
singing birds and running streams, can be made^the 
source of lessons useful as well as pleasant to the chil- 
dren. The country school is shorn of half its usefulness 
because the teacher is not able to rise to the height of 
her opportunities. And what a wonderful opportunity 
she has to teach tfie pupil "to translate forms of beauty 
into thought, and thought into words." 

In an article in the Commo?i School Joiir?ial, then, in 
1840, edited by Horace Mann, the writer, after enu- 
merating a long list of eminent men, says of them: 
"All common school men, some scarcely that, but yet 
all educated men, because they were made alive." 
The school, whether it be in the city or country, which 
does not do this for the pupils is failing of its purpose. 
We have lost sight, to some extent, of the purposes of 
school education, and possibly we may have to go back 
to the country school of Horace Mann in order to get 
our bearings again. 

14 



210 Co7n?no?i Se?ise Didactics 

I do not say we do not, but I do say we ought to 
turn out of our common schools reasonable, thinking, 
live men and women, anxious to be of service to man- 
kind, eager for knowledge, with a quickened con- 
science, with the seeds of growth planted so deep that 
neither drought nor frost can affect them, growing 
year by year like the young sapling of the forest which 
does not reach its maturity until it has been nourished 
by the sunshine of a hundred summers and has breasted 
the storms and winds of a hundred winters. He is 
educated, then, "who thinks most, feels the noblest, 
acts the best. " 

An ideal country schoolhouse and grounds can very 
easily be pictured. The grounds should be not less 

than one acre. The best form is one hun- 
The ideal ^^.^^ ^j^j eighty feet front by two hundred 

and forty feet deep. The land should be 
dry and well drained. Tame grass, such as one would 
have in his own dooryard at home, and trees not too 
near the fence and yet so planted as not to be in the 
way of the children when at play, should be well cared 
for. The schoolhouse should be located so as to 
admit of playgrounds for the boys and girls, with 
open space for outbuildings and sheds in the rear. 
To plant a cluster of evergreens so as to hide such 
buildings in a measure would go very. far to inculcate 
that sense of modesty and decency which is of incal- 
culable value to our boys and girls. The cost would 
be a mere pittance, while the benefits would be beyond 
our power to estimate. Hard, dry walks to the out- 
buildings and from the front gate to the door should 
always be provided. In the front yard pupils should 
be encouraged to plant and care for shrubs and flowers. 
Time spent in their cultivation would not be thrown 



TJie Ciiltiv atiofi of Taste 211 

away by any means. School grounds thus arranged 

and beautified would exert an influence throughout the 

entire district in the improvement of farm property. 

There is room for great improvement along these lines 

in every state. Desolate school grounds can be made 

glad, and the barren, treeless school lots can be made 

to bud and blossom as the rose. 

The district schoolhouse should be the rallying 

point for every influence which tends to elevate or 

benefit mankind. Within its walls should 

11 1 T • 1-1 1 r The rally- 

be kept the district library, the museum ot ing place. 

specimens gathered and labeled by the 
children, the herbarium of flowers and leaves which 
the children have gathered on the prairies or the hills. 
Here may be held the country lyceum, the debating 
society, the singing school. No matter if religious 
meetings and Sunday schools are held here, provided 
the religious conscience can be so elevated that the 
worshipers will not desecrate the room by tobacco, 
nor purloin the books of the pupils. Here maybe held 
historical or scientific lectures for the benefit of both 
parents and pupils. The surroundings should be sightly 
and attractive. Trees and flowers and shrubs should 
adorn the grounds, which should be scrupulously cared 
for. In short, the district schoolhouse and the grounds 
should have such a hold upon the community that they 
would be the last places which the people would per- 
mit to be desecrated by the vandal or the tramp. 

A child naturally loves the beautiful. If you will 
show me a child who has no love for birds or flowers, 
or pictures or music, I think that I can in ^^^ taste 
turn show you one in whom the doctrine of for the 
total depravity will probably be exempli- beautiful. 
fied. So strong- is this instinct in the child's mind that 



212 Cofnmon Se?ise Didactics 

the infant in his mother's arms manifests the first 
dawning of intellect in striving to reach some bright, 
attractive object, or in jumping and crowing in 
response to the singing of the canary bird in the cage 
on the wall. 

Nor is this true of children alone. The attempts of 
the poor in our cities to keep alive their sense of the 
beautiful is most piteous. The oyster-can, picked up 
out of the street, is made to serve as a flower pot in 
which, for a time, the geranium grows and flourishes. 
The cracked sugar bowl holds a rose which, in its 
bloom, softens the air of poverty and adds something 
of cheer to the room. The vine is trailed over the 
broken window, and great pains are taken to give 
vigor and luxuriance to its foliage. 

Most touching sight of all is it when, at the door or 
window, we catch a glimpse of the cripple boy, the 
sick girl, or the worn, discouraged mother, trying to 
get some brightness into their life through flowers or 
the beautiful things which nature places at their dis- 
posal. It is one of the most beneficent designs of 
nature that the lilies of the field are not for the rich 
alone; the flowers, and buds, and sunshine, and trees, 
and fruit are common gifts of God to all his creatures. 

Again, this innate love of the beautiful can be made 
a strong influence in shaping and forming youthful 
character. I have seen a school of rough, uncultured 
boys and girls completely transformed in spirit by the 
action of the teacher in appealing to their sense of 
beauty. Pictures, not always artistic, but better than 
the children see at home, are hung upon the walls. 
Flowers occasionally grace the teacher's desk. A 
bouquet of wild flowers, gathered by a boy or girl 
on the way to school, is accepted with hearty thanks. 



Tlic Ciiltivation of Taste 2ij 

The room is kept more tidy, and neatness of person 
begins to be the habit of pupils as well as of teachers. 

In many states the law designates one acre as a 
suitable size for a schoolhouse lot. This affords ample 
room for the buildings, for playgrounds improve- 
and for planting flowers and shrubs. No ment of 
more healthful influence can be thrown gromids. 
around the school than the habit, on the part of 
the children, of caring for things which they have 
planted and the ownership of which is vested in them. 
A few roses growing in a corner or climbing over the 
door, a flower bed at either side of the front walk, a 
cluster of shrubs near the fence would cost but a trifle, 
while the school grounds would soon become attractive 
to the children and they would view their school with 
pleasure and not with dread. 

There is not very much, I grant, to encourage a 
teacher in this direction. Often the community would 
sneer at it and rude boys w^ould destroy in a night the 
labor and growth of days. And yet most teachers could 
do a work along this line which would be of immense 
benefit to the next generation. Not only would well- 
kept school grounds and pleasing buildings raise the 
price of every acre of ground in the district, but the 
boys and girls of the community would carry into 
active life a remembrance of school days which would 
make better men and better women. 

Likewise, opportunity exists for much improvement 
in the grounds about the city schools. As a general 
thinff, they are destitute of shrubs or flow- ^ .^ 

ers; they are apt to be littered with papers schools. 

and sticks, and refuse of all kinds. In 
some cases they excel the country school in ugliness. 
It is very seldom, in the city, that there is not some 



214- Co mm on Sense Didactic s 

space about the building which, if the teachers were 
only anxious to do it, could be so utilized as to culti- 
vate the children's taste and develop their love for the 
beautiful in nature. 

I can only reiterate what I have said: That, next 
to his home, the schoolhouse ought to be to the child 
the most attractive spot in the district. The lawn 
should be of tame grass; trees of several varieties 
should be planted and cared for. I look forward to 
the time when, especially in our country schools, it 
will be part of the course to teach children the kind of 
trees which flourish best in that section, which of them 
are best for timber, which for shade, and which for 
fuel. Specimens of each will then be found on the 
school ground and referred to for purposes of illustra- 
tion. In the same connection we must teach how to 
plant and care for them, and thus cultivate in each 
child an honest respect for a thriving, growing tree. 
It means much to the child to be initiated in his youth 
into "the brotherhood of venerable trees." 

To decorate the walls of the rooms in the building 
is not necessarily expensive. A few pictures which 

can be purchased at a small cost, a shelf in 
Decora- ^-j^^ corner for books, plants growing in the 

windows, two or three vases filled with 
flowers which the children will take pleasure in pro- 
viding, will change the aspect of the room and make 
it a pleasant, cheerful school home for the pupils. It 
is wonderful how much can be done in this direction 
by the teacher. The effects of these attempts at 
decoration render the pupils more susceptible to good 
influences, and in time reach into the homes from 
which the children come. 

Very often you will find parents ready :and willing to 



The Ctiltivation of Taste 215 

assist you, by loaning pictures for a short time. In 
many places this is done with excellent result. By 
such a means parents become interested in the school 
and study works of art at the same time with their 
children 

The following is taken from the Report of the Com- 
mittee of Twelve on Rural Schools. It is from the 
pen of Supt. Lawton B. Evans, of Georgia. 

"If children are daily surrounded by those influences 
that elevate them, that make them clean and well- 
ordered, that make them love flowers, and jrro7n Re- 
pictures, and proper decorations, they at last port of^ 
reach that degree of culture where nothing ^X'J/^1 
else will please them. When they grow up 
and have homes of their own they must have them 
clean, neat, bright with pictures, and fringed with 
shade trees and flowers; for they have been brought 
up to be happy in no other environment. The true 
test of our civilization and culture is the kind of home 
we are content to live in, and the influences of our 
schools should help to form a disposition for those 
things that make home life happy and healthy. If 
the farmer's boy can be taught to love books when he 
is at school, he will have a library in his home when 
he becomes a man; if the farmer's girl can be taught 
decoration at school, she will want pictures and flow- 
ers and embroidery when she becomes a woman." 

No teacher can be called progressive in any true 
sense of that word who is willing to teach in the old- 
fashioned schoolroom with bare, unwhitewashed walls, 
black with the smoke of many winters, and cheerless 
of anything calculated to make it pleasant or attrac- 
tive. Something in the air of such a room makes 
teaching a drudgery which is well-nigh unendurable. 



2i6 Co mm 71 Se?Lse Didactics 

It costs but little to make a beginning, and, like all 
other good works, when it is once started it will grow. 
Success depends upon whether the teacher is in earnest 
or not. 

No curriculum is complete, no matter how scientific- 
ally it may be framed, which does not make ample 

^ . provision for the aesthetical side of the 

Drawing. ^ . . , . 

child's nature. Hence singmg and draw- 
ing should have their places in the daily program. 
The introduction of these branches has done much to 
soften the austerity of school life and to improve the 
manners and morals of the children. 

If you cannot instruct in drawing, you are deficient 
in an important qualification. Perhaps you think you 
have no talent in that direction. Possibly you are 
right; and yet there are but few persons who cannot 
become fairly good instructors in drawing if they are 
willing to make the effort. You certainly can learn so 
far as to be able to direct the pupils, if you will avail 
yourself of some of the excellent manuals at your 
command. 

I quote the following from Mi?id a?id Ha?td, by 
Charles H. Ham: 

"The value of drawing as an educational agency is 
simply incalculable. It is the first step in manual 
training. It brings the eye and the mind into relations 
of the closest intimacy, and makes the hand the organ 
of both. It trains and develops the sense of form and 
proportion, renders the eye accurate in observation 
and the hand cunning in execution." 

The above quotation is worthy careful study and 
thought. If drawing is of any value in the city schools 
it is equally so in those of the country. The use of 
the hand and the eye, the development of form and 



The Cultivation of Taste 217 

proportion is essential to every child. Because you 
teach in a school in which there is no special teacher 
of drawing is all the stronger reason why you should 
make yourself as nearly perfect as possible in this 
branch. Even though drawing is not in the course of 
study and you are not required to teach it, it still 
remains true that the possession of this art will be of 
great assistance to you in your daily work. 

Drawing widens the child's power of self-expression 
and makes him a more complete master of himself. 
It has a vocabulary of its own which the child must 
have at his finger's ends to fit him for the greatest use- 
fulness in life. 

The introduction of smging lessons into the public 
school marks an important step in educational prog- 
ress. P. A. Barnett says this: "To put it sino-'ng- 
on its lowest ground it is a fine physical 
exercise; it cultivates very directly a sense of commu- 
nity and common endeavor, and it is a very powerful 
means of stimulating strong sentiment on wholesome 
lines. " 

Rightly conducted, it is an efficient aid in school 
government. In a large western city a prominent 
lawyer made an attack on music in the schools as a 
useless and costly fad. The same day the supervisor 
of music told me that if the gentleman would go with 
her she would show him an entire school, of five 
rooms, almost made over from rough, disorderly 
pupils into quiet, orderly, and obedient boys and 
girls. She added, "The teachers attribute the change 
to the softening, chastening influence of the music 
lessons." Other teachers, since then, have verified 
to me the statement that they avail themselves of 
the same means in governing difficult schools. 



2i8 Com?no?i Se?ise Didac tic s 

The person who can sing is more at home in the 
church which he attends, and in the social circle. 
In every walk of life it ministers to his enjoyment and 
adds to his usefulness. Perhaps you cannot sing; you 
say you have neither ear nor voice. Where there is a 
will there is a way. You can at least learn to read 
music. You can always find in your school some older 
pupil who will assist you if you are really in earnest 
in your efforts. 

Do not make the blunder, however, of mistaking 
noise for music. It is not a good plan to allow sing- 
ing the first thing after an intermission. Rather let 
the children sit in perfect quiet until the circulation 
becomes normal and the heart ceases to throb vio- 
lently, as it does after exercise at recess, and then let 
them go directly to their books. For a singing exer- 
cise the period before recess is much better than the 
one directly after. 

Be sure that you appreciate the importance of the 
singing lesson. It will help you very much if you can 
have some musical instrument in your schoolroom. 
Perhaps among your pupils there is one who has a fine 
voice, or one who can play the violin or the piano 
with rare skill. Avail yourself of the aid of such pupils 
occasionally in making music popular in the school. 

If you can do this successfully, you will have less 
occasion to worry over unruly pupils and more strength 
and zeal in the work of instruction in all branches. 

An old lady who was asked what was the best thing 

her mother did for her, replied: "She taught me to 

love beautiful things. All my life, although 
Conclusion. , . j ^ i i t i 

I nave seen sorrow and trouble 1 nave 

seemed to dwell in a garden of roses. Under the 

tuition of my mother I learned to interpret the Ian- 



The Cultivation of Taste 2ig 

guage of flowers and the love songs of the birds. 
Since then I have traveled in foreign lands. I have 
caught the inspiration which comes when standing in 
the presence of the great masterpieces of painting and 
sculpture, but I have rejoiced more at the glimpse of 
a beautiful landscape, or at the sight of the white- 
washed cottages, or the fruitful fields kept by the 
peasantry of the land, because there I find the beauty 
which blesses the humblest lot. This sense of the 
beautiful which my mother implanted has been a 
source of strength and comfort, and daily I thank her 
for it." 

Try these things if you have not already done so; if 
you have commenced the good work, persevere in it 
day by day and week by week. You will do a blessed 
work for the children in your school if you can con- 
vince them that 

Beautiful Gates Are for Beautiful Things. 

Quotations Worth Reading 

the country school. 

Free Schools.— \n a social and political sense it is a free school 
system. It knows no distinction of rich and poor, of bond and 
free or between those who, in the imperfect light of this world 
are 'seeking through different avenues to reach the gate of 
Heaven Without money and without price it throws open its 
doors and spreads the table of its bounty for all the children ot 
the State. Like the sun, it shines not only upon the good, but 
upon the evil, that they may become good; and, hke the ram, its 
blessings descend not only upon the just but upon the unjust, that 
their injustice may depart from them and be known no more. 

—Horace Mann. 

Still sits the schoolhouse by the road, 

A ragged beggar sunning : 
Around it still the sumachs grow 

And blackberry vines are running. 

— /. G. Whittier> 

The tendency of primary education has been to lead the coun- 
try youth away from the farm instead of helping him in the study 



220 Common Se?ise Didactics 

of those sciences relating to production. It would be politic and 
patriotic to incorporate into the farm youth's education some 
knowledge that shall bear more directly upon his future life and 
work. 

— Secretary Ja tnes Wilson, 

The day for plain talking is at hand. The exigencies of the 
times demand it. All over the land are school grounds bare, 
dreary and desolate, without a tree to shelter the children from 
the winter's blast or the summer's sun. Schoolhouses ill-venti- 
la,ted, unattractive and repulsive. Outhouses with doors off the 
hinges, clapboards off the sides, defiled and defaced, a disgrace 
to a civilized community. Teachers working for a mere pittance, 
with no adequate conception of the true nature of their work, 
charged with training ihe future citizens of the republic. O 
women of the state, O mothers of a coming race, remember that 

"The child's sob in the silence curses deeper 
Than the strong man in his wrath." 

Would you work for God, would you work for Christ, would 
you work for your country, would you work for humanity? God 
in his wonderful providence has brought his work and laid it 
down at your very doors ; it is in your home ; it is in your family ; 
it is in the school which your child attends. 

—From an Address to Teachers. 
TASTE FOR THE BE A UTIFUL. 

A thing of beauty is a joy forever. 

—Keats. 

A taste for all things beautiful is a taste for all things good. 

—Old Sayi7ig. 

As thrills of long-hushed tone 
Live in the viol, so our souls grow fine 
With keen vibrations from the touch divine 

Of noble natures gone. 

—James Russell Lowell. 

The lovely things men build in the days of strength are but the 
reproduction of the lovely thoughts that were whispered in their 
hearts in the days of tender youth, 

—Selected. 
DECORA TIONS. 

The sink, porcelain lined to prevent rust, is 3 feet long by 
lyi feet wide. The water pipe conducts to the exterior of the 
building. The statuary and plants were placed there by the 
teachers. It makes a very attractive drinking place where good 
pure water is secured. The cost for tank and sink was Si 2. 
Most district schoolhouses I am acquainted with have a small 
passage way at the entrance where a tank and sink may be 
placed, thus taking the water out of the schoolroom proper. 



The C ultiv ation of Taste 221 

Even if the tank and sink must be put in one corner of the 
schoolroom it can be screened with a curtain ; either way is infinitely 
superior to the open pail among dinner pails, wraps, overshoes, 
broom, washpan, fragments of lunch, etc. 

The tank should have fresh water twice a day at least and 
always be emptied at night, so there would be no danger of 
freezing in cold weather. 

—Suggestions by O.J. Kern. 

Fiowers should abound in the schoolhouse grounds. They are 
among the best educators, for they develop taste and a love for 
the beautiful, and make men sensitive to the attractive and 
lovely, in town or country, in field or forest. , . . The young 
farmer attending the district school could readily be taught what 
a plant gets from the soil and what it gets from the air. The 
several grasses could be planted and their office in filling the soil 
wnth humus, enabling the soil to retain moisture, could be 
explained. The legumes — peas, beans, clover and alfalfa — could 
be grown in the schoolhouse yard, and during recess or at the 
noon hour the teacher could interest the students by digging up a 
young pea or clover root and showing the nodules, whose office is 
to bring the free nitrogen from the atmosphere and fix it in 

the soil. 

— Secretary James Wilson^ 

The planting of a sapling is a trifle in expense. There it grows 
and costs nothing but time. Every tree is a feather in the earth's 
cap— a plume in her bonnet — a tress upon her forehead. It is a 
comfort, an ornament, a refreshing to the people. It is a virtue 
to set out trees. It is loving one's neighbor as we love ourselves. 
Set out trees, not to make your home outshine your neighbor's, 
but for him to look at and walk under and to beautify God's earth, 
which He clothes with trees, 
—Nathaniel Peabody Rogers, ''Herald of Freedom," Concord, N. H„ Aug. 6, 1841. 

The environment of the child may be made a permanent influ- 
ence in moulding taste. The colours of the walls and the wall 
decorations should be artistic ; both school furniture, decorations 
and the building itself should be marked by proportion and sim- 
plicity of design ; the school should be clean and bright; the furni- 
ture orderly arranged; the teacher's dress in good taste. The 
presence of a few plants and fiowers also has a refining influence, 
and speaking generally the addition of anything that is pretty, 
graceful or attractive should be utilized. Owing to the plastic 
nature of the children these first impressions are very important. 

— Dexter atid Gar lick. 

Children are quick to notice contrasts and to make comparisons. 
They will compare their dusty, dirty, dingy, smoke-begrimed 
schoolhouse, with its broken plaster, rusty stove and rough knot- 
protruding floors, its broken, rattle-trap desks and dirty windows, 



222 Coninion Sense Didactics 

with their mother's clean, neat, tidy kitchen, with their parents' 
homes where comforts and conveniences are multiplying, where 
plate glass windows, cedar trees and other evidences of prosperity 
and care and forethought attract one's eye as he drives from one 
schoolhouse to another. 

— Wni. K. Fowler^ 
DRA WING. 

A help to see the picture which the sentence suggests is the 
picturing with the pencil. The imagination works more defi- 
nitely, and the words grow to have definite meaning, as the child 
pictures his thought. This suggests profitable busy-work for 
primary grades. 

—Sarah L. Arnold. 

Allow pupils from the beginning to attempt drawing from real 
objects instead of from pictures on the flat. Drawing a leaf from 
the fiat copy is only a makeshift compared with sketching the 
outline of a real leaf placed on the desk right before the eyes of 
the child. 

—John Swett. 
SINGING. 

Plato said: "Music is a moral law. It gives a soul to the 
universe, flight to the imagination, a charm to sadness, gayety 
and life to everything. It is the essence of order and leads to all 
that is good, just and beautiful." Luther said: "Music is one 
of the best arts. It drives away sadness, quickens and refreshes 
the heart. It is half the discipline, and makes men more gentle, 
more modest and sensible. A schoolmaster must know how to 
sing, else I will have nothing to do with him." Mr. Gladstone is. 
quoted as saying: "They who think music ranks among the 
trifles of existence are in gross error, because from the beginning 
of the world down to the present time it has been one of the most 
forcible instruments both for training and arousing and for gov- 
erning the spirit of man." 

—F. F. Churchill. 

Teach the children to sing our national hymns. And when 
they sing "The Star Spangled Banner" or "America" the entire 
school should stand as a token of patriotism. 

— From an Address. 

The highest results cannot be reached, especially with children 
who do not hear good music outside of the school, unless the 
instructor or other persons interested provide for the occasional 
execution of good music in the schoolroom. This is consistent 
with the idea consistently stated that the development of the 
musical sense and the ability to enjoy music is not second in impor- 
tance to the power to execute, considered in its general applica- 
tion, inasmuch as while few will attain such skill in the rendition 
of music it is desirable that here in America, as in Germany, all 
the people become lovers of music. 

—5. T. Button. 



The Cultivation of Taste 22j 

Questions for Examination 

1. What do you understand by the term Nature Study? 

2. How is patriotism best taught? 

J. What ends are to be kept in mind in temperance instruction? 
4. What reasons may be given for the introduction of singing 

as a study in our schools? 
J-. In training children what use can be made of their natural 

love for the beautiful? 

6. Describe an ideal schoolhouse and grounds. 

7. Contrast two schoolrooms; one decorated and one undeco- 

rated. 

8. What value has drawing as a branch to be taught? 

9. Speak of music as an aid in school discipline. 

10. What ought the country school to do for the boy on the farm? 

Suggestions Worth Thinking About 

/. Who was Col. Francis W. Parker? 

2. How far can a person who has neither voice nor ear teach 

music? 

3. Are you afraid of fads? 

4. Am I willing to expend a little of my salary in decorating 

my schoolroom? 

5. Am I careful to recognize in any pupil a sense of beauty 

and harmony as seen, for instance, in the arrangement of 
a bouquet of wild flowers? 



CHAPTER XII 

THE RECITATION 

The Life of the School 

A good recitation is one of the best tests of the pupil's moral 
character. It gives him an opportunity to describe himself. 

- William T. Harris. 

A good recitation is the real test of the school. It shows, as in 
a mirror, the interest, skill and information of the teacher, and 
the work done by the pupils. 

— George Rowland. 

Give laggards and dullards a chance. After a pupil has made 
tw^o or three failures call on another pupil to do the work, but do 
not forget to give the one who made the failure another trial. 

— /. N. Patrick. 

Good methods of teaching are important, but they cannot 
supply the want of ability in the teacher. The Socratic method 
is good, but a Socrates behind the teacher's desk to ask quesdons 
is better. 

— Thomas M. Balliet. 

'^r^HERE are three factors concerned in the recita- 

l tion: the lesson, the class, the instructor. 

The lesson may be too difficult, or not adapted to 
the present wants of the class; the pupils may be dull, 
or willfully idle; the teacher may be too 
recitation. learned, or too ignorant, or indifferent; and 
the recitation fails from one or more of 
these causes. In fact, at times all these faults are 
plainly to be noted as the cause of an insufferably dull 
recitation. 

Let us note these factors in the order named. 

It is vain for us to talk of discarding text-books. 
The main point is to know how to use them so as to 
get the most out of them for the class. In assigning 



The Recitation 225 

the lesson upon which the recitation is to be based, the 
teacher should have regard: (a) to the age and ability 
of the pupils in the class; (b) to the diffi- j^j^, i.^son. 
culties which will need careful study and 
explanation; (c) to the amount of mechanical work 
required, as solving examples or preparing manu- 
script; and (d) to the number and length of other 
lessons which the pupil must prepare. 

The last two points should have more attention than 
they usually receive. Sometimes the arithmetic lesson 
embraces one or two pages of examples, and the work 
must be brought in on paper. The examples are very 
easy, but it takes time to solve them. A long history 
lesson is assigned, without regard to other work. In 
schools in which special teachers are employed, pupils 
often have a right to complain: "She doesn't seem to 
think we have any other lessons to learn." Other 
matters, also, must be taken into account, such as the 
physical conditions of the class and the amount of 
home duties which parents may rightfully exact from 
their children. In fact, the assignment of lessons 
demands a carefifl adjustment of requirements to the 
conditions of home and school life. 

After listening to the attempts of a class to recite 
and noting the failure of the majority to comprehend, 
in the slightest degree, the subject of the lesson, I 
heard the teacher say: "You may take to the middle 
of page ninety-five next time. The class is excused." 
At recess I purposely drew the teacher into a conver- 
sation upon the assignment of lessons, and she 
explained the machine to me in this way: 

"Our term's work is from page 116 to page 226. I 
divided the number of pages, no, by 12, the weeks in 
the term. Then I divided this by the number of school 

15 



226 Conimo7i Sense Didactics 

days in the week, and that gave me the average length 
of the lesson." "How long have you followed this 
practice?" "Ever since I have been in this grade — ■ 
three years." "Do you mean to say that the lesson 
assigned to your class to-day is exactly the same as 
you assigned your class a year ago?" "Why, certainly 
it is. This book goes out at Christmas to make room 
for another study." 

Oh, the terrible machine; how it grinds on and on, 
crushing the children between its merciless cogs, in the 
meanwhile stifling thought and killing enthusiasm in 
the poor teacher who is forced to turn the crank! 

Whatever day 
Makes man a slave, takes half his worth away. 

I have dwelt at some length upon this point because 
it is so seldom brought to the notice of teachers. A 
wise determination in the quantity of matter assigned 
for each lesson is one criterion of a thoughtful teacher. 
I have named the details to be considered in assigning 
the lessons. They are worthy of careful thought and 
attention. 

There are two conditions under which the lesson may 

be re-assigned. First, if it is evident that the pupils 

o . have not made an honest attempt to master 

Re-assign- . , ^ . 

inent of it, they may be sent to their seats with a 
lesson. reprimand more or less severe, as circum- 

stances demand. In no case should the pupils be 
allowed to make use of the teacher as a crutch, by the 
aid of which to hobble over the ground. 

Second, the same lesson may be assigned for farther 
study, after the explanations given by the teacher have 
thrown additional light upon some difficult points 
which proved to be beyond the pupils' ability to con- 
quer without help. In many cases the period allotted 



The Recitation 22^ 

to the recitation may be profitably spent in explana- 
tions and suggestions, and in carefully working as a 
member of the class — a class leader, as it were— espe- 
cially when the subject seems very intricate or dry. 
But the recitation, when repeated, should be the work 
of the individual pupil, and should determine how 
much he has profited by your assistance. The aim 
should be to aid the pupil in the direction of more 
intelligent study of the lesson. 

The second factor is the pupils, or the class to be 
instructed. The pupils in the class must be convinced 
that a good recitation is their gain, and a The class. 
poor recitation is their loss. They must 
comprehend still further that a competent recitation is 
always the fruit of diligent and intelligent study on 
their part. I use the word i?itellige?it designedly, as 
you will see when you read what I have to say in dis- 
cussing the next point. 

A recitation is simply a reproduction of that which 
the pupil has acquired and retains in his mind. There 
is nothing complicated about it. It requires an appli- 
cation of attention, memory, and expression. The 
character of the recitation will vary with the develop- 
ment of these qualities in the mind of the individual 
pupil. One pupil will give you a memoriter recitation, 
and another will give the recitation in his own words. 
Which one understands the lesson the best you can 
determine for yourself when the recitation is over. 

The practice of letting pupils question each other 
during the recitation and ask for explanations from 
their fellows has much to commend it, especially in 
the upper grades. It induces thought, and adds to the 
pupiTs power of expressing his ideas. Under such a 
drill the habit, which so many form, of learning the 



228 Common Seiise Didactics 

very words of the book will disappear as the incentives 
to originality increase. 

The recitation should do four things for the pupil: 
(a) It should determine his knowledge as obtained 
from the book used by the class; (b) it should be the 
means of making clear to him points which need 
explanation; (c) it should convey to him information 
not in his book; (d) it should afford him the medium 
of measuring himself with his fellows. 

Individual instruction has its advantages, but class 
instruction is superior as an agent for awakening 
Individual interest and inciting to exertion. Yet a 
and class large amount of personal instruction must 
instruction. ^^ ^^^^^ -^^ ^^^^^ ^^^^ school. The lazy 

must be stimulated, the indolent aroused, and the 
dullard encouraged and aided in his efforts to keep 
up with his class. In a large class there is little oppor- 
tunity during the recitation for work with individual 
pupils. To attempt it is to throw the class into dis- 
order and to cultivate habits of inattention on the part 
of the brighter pupils. You must not neglect personal 
instruction, but how and when to give it must be deter- 
mined by circumstances. 

Sometimes an older or more mature pupil may be 
called to your rescue, with advantage to all concerned. 
Upon this point Dr. Harris says, in the Report of the 
Committee of Twelve upon Rural Schools: "Limited 
entirely to ungraded schools and to teachers with dis- 
ciplinary power, the older pupils may profitably be 
employed to help in the work of the school. But they 
should not take up any work continuously — it should 
be occasional, inasmuch as every thread of the school 
work must come under the e3'^e of the schoolmaster. 
If he has asked an older pupil to explain a point in 



TJie Recitation 22g 

arithmetic to a dull pupil, the latter will show the 

degree of efficiency of that help in the first recitation 

after it." 

The limitation made by Dr. Harris to ungraded 

schools may be removed in cases in which the number 

of pupils in the class is unreasonably large, j^ot limited 

as it is in many of our smaller towns and to ungraded 

, " , . , 1 • • schools. 

Cities. 1 once saw a case like this in a 

large school: The class in arithmetic was at the 

board. After the teacher had explained a typical 

example to the pupils they turned to the board for 

work. One little girl seemed hopelessly confused; she 

was slow in her comprehension. The teacher said to 

a little boy who had finished his work: "John, May is 

in trouble; see if you can't help her." John stepped 

quietly to May's side; they conversed in low tones 

until the example was finished, and he returned to his 

place. The puzzled expression passed from the girl's 

face, and throughout the remainder of the recitation 

she had no difficulty in her work. Sometimes a child 

can help a child better even than the teacher can. 

The remaining 'factor is the teacher. (See page 12.) 
Time should be given, near the close of the recitation, 
to prepare for that of the next day. This ^. , 

preparation should consist in pointing out 
those items which may likely need especial study, and 
sometimes in giving a partial explanation of them. 
The effort should be made by the teacher to show the 
connection between the lesson just recited and the one 
to follow. When the pupils of the class go to their 
seats, they should have fixed in the mind a definite 
idea of what will be expected of them to-morrow. 

This will lead to that intelligent study to which I 
referred in a preceding paragraph. (See page 18.) To 



2J0 Common Se?ise Didactics 

study intelligently is to have constantly in mind an 
aim, a purpose, an ability to accomplish the end 
sought. It is a part of your legitimate work to prevent 
aimless study. This you can best do by directions 
and suggestions tending to concentrate attention upon 
the most important or material parts of the lesson. 

The best method for you to use in any recitation is 
that by which you can awaken the greatest interest in 
the subject. The method must be adapted to the per- 
sonality of the class. In the first place, study the sub- 
ject; then study the class individually and in the aggre- 
gate, and methods will suggest themselves. It is 
rarely that a student of devices only is a good 
instructor. Our text-books are full of devices 
designed to lessen the work of the teacher and to 
hasten the progress of the pupil. But it is just as nec- 
essary that the teacher should think as it is that the 
pupil should. This multiplication of devices does 
more than any other thing to give us rote teachers, 
who take the road the guide-board points out, and 
who are lost at once if the guide-board is missing. A 
blind, persistent study of devices in the school, and at 
the institute, destroys the germs of originality on the 
part of the teacher. This in turn prevents the devel- 
opment of his individuality, and quenches the teaching 
spirit. (See page 13.) 

It is essential to a good recitation that the teacher 
snould be a leader in thought. He has the advantage 
of superior knowledge; he sees the essential parts of 
the lesson more clearly, and has a mind better trained 
to observe, compare, and conclude. But this must 
not prevent him from being a co-worker with the 
class. The best teacher is a member, for the time 
being, of his class, enters into all difficulties, and 



The Recitation 2jr 

rejoices in every success. "I am with you," is won- 
derfully stimulating to the pupils. 

Teach the pupil the art of study, and everything- 
besides becomes easy to him. But to do this you 
must sometimes study ivith\\\m\ never for Teach the 
him. In difficult places you may go before art of 
him with a lantern, but never behind him ^i^'^y- 
with a whip. If he slips, help him to rise; if he mis- 
takes, set him right; if he becomes discouraged, lend 
him a helping hand; but do not carry him in your 
arms, lest you make a child of him; and do not 
reprove him too severely, or chide his dullness, lest 
you make him a slave. 

Read what Roger Ascham, an old English school- 
master, says: "When the child doeth well, either in 
the choosing or true placing of his words, let the 
master praise him, and say, 'Here ye do well!' For I 
assure you there is no such whetstone to sharpen a 
good wit, and encourage a will to learning as is praise. 
But if the child miss, either in forgetting a word, or in 
changing a good with a worse, or misordering the 
sentence, I would not have the master frown, or chide 
with him, if the child have done his diligence and used 
no truantship. For I know, by good experience, that 
a child shall take more profit of two faults gently 
warned of, than of four things rightly hit." (See 
page 170.) 

The teacher who understands the true nature of the 

recitation will readily see the necessity of becoming a 

good listener. Let the child finish what he Teacher 

has to sav in answer to a question, and do a good 

, . .... V . ttstejier. 

not interrupt him with hints or suggestions. 

The proper time for the teacher is when the pupil is 

through. Neither should pupils be allowed to inter- 



2J2 Common Sense Didactics 

rupt each other In reciting. Here is a splendid oppor- 
tunity to inculcate good breeding. Nothing is more 
awkward and nothing can be more embarrassing than 
for one person to interrupt another in conversation. 

The pupil should not be able to judge of his work 
from any indication on the part of the teacher or mem- 
bers of the class, until he has completed his answer. 
Any other course tends to confuse him, to hinder him 
from giving clear expression to his thoughts, and to 
destroy his confidence in his own ability. If the 
progress of the class as a whole seems slow and unsat- 
isfactory, do not let the pupils think that you are dis- 
couraged. Nothing so disheartens a class as a dispiri- 
ted teacher. 

One part of the teacher's work is to hear the recita- 
tion, and it is the part of the pupils to make the best 
recitation possible under the circumstances. Expla- 
nations, suggestions, questions, fuller information, 
should come at the appropriate time after the pupil 
has been tested as to the amount of preparation he has 
made. Dr. Harris says that "a good recitation — a 
class recitation — enables the teacher to show each 
pupil how his lesson that he has worked on looks in 
the minds of his fellow pupils, so that he learns just 
as much by hearing his fellows recite as by reciting 
himself; and if there is no text-book, that cannot be 
done." As he progresses, however, the pupil ought 
to gather this knowledge of how the subject looks 
to others in the class, without directions from the 
teacher. 

This suggestion from Dr. Harris is very wise and 
exceedingly practical. To be able to look at questions 
from the standpoint of others is a valuable acquisition, 
and sometimes it is a safeguard against drawing wrong 



TJic Recitation 2jj 

infe-rences or arriving at unwarranted conclusions. It 
makes the man more charitable and more tolerant of 
the stand taken by others. The recitation, if rightly 
conducted, affords, with older pupils, an opportunity 
to inculcate an honest respect for the opinions of their 
fellows, which will follow them into after life. 

What then is the purpose of the recitation ? How may 
the recitation be made to subserve its purpose? Those 
two questions must naturally be discussed Prepara. 
together, as each depends so largely upon Hon. 
the other. To recite is to rename, or recall. I cannot 
recite that of which I have no knowledge. The first step, 
then, is that of preparation. The recitation is to be con- 
fined to the matter contained in a certain number of 
pages, or matter grouped under a given topic. The pupil 
is to recite, or recall, all that he has been able to gather 
from these pages. The recitation exercises his mem- 
ory, his expression, his ability to reproduce in his 
own words the thoughts of others, his powers of con- 
centration, and his habit of attention. 

A good recitation embracing all these points is the 
result of right 'habits of study. Without diligent 
study of the lesson on the part of the pupils there 
can be no good recitation. Consequently, the teacher 
who refuses to hear a recitation which the pupils have 
not attempted to prepare has a correct understanding 
of the situation. But, on the other hand, certain 
duties connected with' the recitation appertain to the 
teacher. Preparation from the teaching standpoint is 
most desirable. To study a lesson with the view of 
teacJiing it to a class is very different from studying it 
with the view of reciting it iii the class. 

Here is the point of failure, many times. The 
teacher is prepared to recite, and does recite for 



2J4 Comino7i Sense Didactics 

the pupil when he fails, but is not prepared to illus- 
trate, suggest, or explain so as to interest the pupil 
and at the same time stimulate him to do his best for 
himself. 

The next time your class fails in a recitation don't 
be in haste to charge it up to dullness, or even to idle- 
ness. Possibly the fault is with you. At any rate, the 
suggestions thrown out will bear thinking about. (See 
page 72.) 

It will be well for you to keep in mind these three 
principles, which are universally recognized: unity, 
thoroughness, and the spirit of inquiry. 

The recitation should not be a detached exercise, as 
it is in many schools. The connection between the 
jj . lesson in hand and those preceding it should 

never be overlooked. So, too, the way 
should be left open for connecting the lesson in hand 
with those which are to follow it. You are to con- 
sider, not the unity of the recitation, but the unity 
of the subject. Hence the value of frequent reviews 
is not only to fix what was learned yesterday, but to 
aid the pupil in the mastery of to-day's lesson. This 
element in conducting the recitation is seldom called 
to the attention of teachers. One reason why pupils 
fail in term examination is because they have learned 
each subject by piece-meal, as it were, and have no 
well-defined, clear conception of it as a whole. 

The high-school teacher complains that the pupils 
from the grammar grades have not been well instructed; 
the college professor makes a similar charge against 
the students who come from the high school; and the 
college graduate finds that his knowledge is not avail- 
able in active life. The same reason applies to each 
case. The entire process of instruction has been frag- 



TJie Recitation 2j^ 

mentary, disjointed, and mutilated. It is impossible 
to construct an enduring conception of any subject 
thus learned in fragments. 

Before the lesson in hand is passed by for the next, 
the pupil should comprehend its meaning as far as 
possible at that time. Insist upon thorough- Thorouo-h- 
ness, but not to the extent of causing ncss. 
weariness in the child's mind. Make sure of certain 
points and then you may leave others to be cleared up 
in the review, or even to be explained by succeeding 
lessons. Lay aside a subject before you exhaust it if 
you do not intend to kill all interest in it on the part 
of the children. 

"How far shall I insist upon thoroughness?" is a 
question to be answered in connection with the ability 
of the pupil's mind to comprehend. Do not attempt 
to measure his ability by yours. This wrong idea of 
thoroughness, that before a child is allowed to drop a 
subject he must grasp all its bearings — in fact, under- 
stand it as well as his teacher — has caused an immense 
amount of waste^ in education. Read the extract from 
Hinsdale's Art of Study, at the end of this chapter. 
It will help you to understand this subject of thorough- 
ness in a practical way. 

Thoroughness is often but another name for dullness; 
and most irksome dullness at that. Thoroughness in its 
true sense does not consist in knowing everything that 
is to be known about a subject, but rather in knowing 
well whatever you do know. To attempt to cover an 
entire subject in a given time is really an enemy to 
thoroughness. This practice of regarding quantity 
rather than quality has led to overloading courses of 
stud}^ to the great detriment of sound learning. The 
teacher should insist upon clear ideas and clear think- 



2j6 Coninion Se?ise Didactics 

ing to-day, in order that there may be clearer ideas 
and clearer thinking to-morrow. 

Upon this matter Roark, in his Methods in Ediica- 
tio?i, sdiYs: "The rule of the first importance in drill- 
ing is that the interested consciousness of the pupils must 
be evoked throughout the exercise; mere dull monot- 
ony of repetition is not drill. Gain in power and skill 
is made in the same degree in which — to use Matthew 
Arnold's fine phrase — ' consciousiiess permeates the work.' 

"It is in violation of this rule that pedagogical crimes 
are committed in the name of 'thoroughness.' To 
have the pupils thresh over the old straw of their 
learning is not to secure thoroughness. The strong 
distaste for some studies or portions of subjects that 
results from such work seems to close the pores of the 
mind, so to speak, and thus effectually prevents such a 
'soaking in' of the matter as is essential to true 
thoroughness. Drill must be stimulative, not dead- 
ening." 

The teacher should seek to arouse in the pupil's mind 

such a spirit of inquiry, and of self-activity, that he 

welcomes new ideas; and, through assimila- 

Spirit of x^xoxv with those already held in mind, comes 
inq2iiry. .•'.,... 

at last to a comprehension or the subject as 

a whole. This is one criterion of a successful recita- 
tion — that the mind of the pupil be left in a receptive 
condition, eager for to-morrow's lesson. 

The most alarming feature about the recitation, as 
universally made, is its deadness. Cold, pulseless, 
without the breath of life to quicken its features, it is 
laid away at its close, and no reference is made to it 
by friend or foe. The dead past is allowed to bury its 
dead. (See page 34-) 

The object of the recitation is not simply to awaken 



TJie Recitation 2jy 

a transient interest; it is to stimulate, to feed, to keep 
alive, so that the growth of the mind may be steady, 
progressive, and perpetual. Unless to-day's recitation 
throws light upon that of yesterday, there is small 
hope that to-morrow's lesson will aid in understanding 
that of to-day. In the light of yesterday, to-day, and 
to-morrow, the recitation should become a unit. 

Study carefully the following propositions taken 
from the proceedings of the Wisconsin Normal Teach- 
er's Institute. 

"Prop. I. The teacher must have in mind a definite 
purpose, or purposes, to be realized in the recitation. 

"Prop. 2. He must have in mind the things which 
must be known, or the steps which must be taken, in 
order that the purpose may be realized. 

"Prop. 3. The teacher must determine what of these 
things the pupil now knows or can do. 

"Prop. 4. He must thus determine what of the 
things indicated under Proposition 2 the pupil still has 
to learn or do, and the order in which they should be 
known or done." 

Other points rnust not be neglected. The place in the 
room assigned for the class to stand or sit should be 
carefully selected. It should not be in the ^, , 
rear of the room, because both teacher and ics of the 
class must then talk over the heads of the ^^^^t'^^^^^- 
pupils studying at their desks. It should be where 
the teacher can command the eye of every one in the 
class, and yet it must not obstruct the view which he 
should have of the school. 

The attitude of the teacher toward the recitation 
determines its character. You cannot hope to obtain 
a good recitation if your whole soul is not in the work 
of that hou;. The personality of the teacher is shown 



2j8 Comfnon Sefise Didactics 

in the recitation more than in government or discipline. 
A|;tention and interest on the part of the teacher will 
generate the same attributes in the pupils. 

The recitation must be adapted to the individual 
capacity of the child. The boy having a good com- 
mand of words will impress the hearer with the idea 
that he knows it all "and more too." The hesitating, 
timid girl will convey the impression that she knows 
but little, and yet a few searching questions will reveal 
the fact that she really has the better comprehension 
of the lesson. 

One of the most important factors in conducting the 
recitation is the eye of the teacher. Stand in such a 
position that you can see every member of the class 
during the recitation. Look in the faces of the class 
reciting, and you can judge of the real interest which 
the lesson awakens, by the changing expression of 
countenance on the part of different members. 

Also by the tones of his voice, the teacher expresses 
what is going on in his own mind, his interest or lack 
of interest, his attention or inattention; in fact, the 
teacher, at the time of recitation, reveals himself by 
his voice as in no other way. Train your eye to see 
and your voice to express, if you expect to awaken the 
enthusiasm and attention necessary to a recitation pro- 
ductive of the most good. 

Some one says that to question well is to teach well. 
This art, so desirable for the teacher, cannot be 
^, attained without much care and study. 

of ques- Consider that the questions must be 
tiomng. pointed, concise, and definite. It is a sorry 

comment upon your methods when the pupil replies to 
your question, "I don't know what you mean." It 
is true that the question should not contain in itself 



TJie Recitation 



239 



the answer, or suggest the answer to the pupil, but it 
is equally true that every reasonable question should 
be stated in terms familiar to the class, and should 
have relation to some portion of the lesson under 
consideration. 

There are three kinds of questions which you will be 
called upon to use in the class. First, there are those 
intended to aid you in ascertaining the amount of 
honest effort which each pupil has made to master the 
lesson; next, you may ask questions in order to make 
clear points which need explanation, and also to give 
information not in the text-book; finally, are the 
questions which reach back into yesterday's recitation 
and enable you to judge whether this lesson connects 
with those preceding it, whether your explanations 
were understood, and whether the recitation as a whole 
has made an enduring impression upon the class. 
The questions last mentioned will afford you a good 
method of proving your own work. 

In asking questions these directions will be of help 
to you: 

1. Do not point at the pupil from whom you desire 
an answer. 

2. Do not repeat a question for the benefit of the 
inattentive pupil. 

3. State your questions in language easily under- 
stood. 

4. Wait a moment for an answer, if the pupil is dull 
of comprehension. 

5. Do not allow pupils to try twice in answering one 
question. 

6. Look steadily at the pupil who is answering, and 
require him to look at you. 

The written exercise has a value of its own. No 



240 Common Sense Didactics 

pupil is well taught who is not occasionally subjected 
to the test of answering in writing questions pertaining 
to the lesson for that day. Such an exercise 
recitation. tends to make the pupil independent of 
the teacher, aids in cultivating language, 
and fixes knowledge permanently in the mind. Oral 
and written recitations each have advantages, and 
neither should prevail to the exclusion of the other. 

Read in the notes what Dr. White says regarding 
the attempt to teach by the inductive method only. 
Study it carefully, for it is full of suggestions. The 
recitation offers the means of imparting a certain 
amount of information directly, and this is by no 
means an unimportant phase of the exercise. 

In conducting the recitation you will find occasion 
to employ your knowledge, your skill, your ingenuity, 
if 3^ou expect to make it 

The Life of the School. 

Quotations Worth Reading 

recita tion. 

The object of the recitation is : 

1. To find what the pupil knows, to prepare him for instruction. 

2. To discover his misconceptions and difficulties. 

3. To secure the activity of his mind, and his full cooperation. 

4. To test the result and outcome of what you have taught. 

5. To determine the pupil's readiness or ability to go on. 

6. To test yourself as his teacher, 

— /. G. Fitch. 

It is the recitation, with its direct and indirect influence, which 
makes a pupil an independent, courageous student, or a hopeless 
beggar. 

— Selected. 
THE LESSON. 

In order to assign a lesson well the teacher must not only 
know the text-book used but must know the subject also. 

—Ruric N. Roark. 

The first thing to be considered is that the pupil shall be ready 



The Recitation z/j.! 

for the lesson, or to reverse the form of statement, that the lesson 
shall be adapted to the pupil. 

—B. A . Hinsdale. 

To assign the lesson in accordance with the ability of the class 
to acquire, requires judgment, knowledge and a large share of 
common sense. 

—Selected. 
THE CLASS. 

No teacher can make good scholars who does not manage the 
recitation skillfully. It is in this he will need his greatest tact, 
for he has much to lose or much to gain. If he fail he will have 
taught his pupils to hate school and study, will have paralyzed 
their efforts to learn, and will have created habits that must 
continue to cripple their energies through life. If he succeed, he 
will have the proud satisfaction of seeing the budding faculties of 
the human soul bloom under the culture of his hands, and happy 
hearts made wiser and better, will thank him for his kindness 
and care. 

—J. p. Wicker sham. 

Class work enables the pupil to compare himself with others ; 
but more than this it enables the teacher to see the child as 
nature has made him, — ambitious or indolent, honest or tricky, 
frank or deceitful, jealous or rejoicing in the success of his mate. 
Child nature is revealed in the class as it is nowhere else. 

—Selected. 
THE TEACHER. 

"What thou dost not know thou canst not tell." What a 
teacher knows superficially he teaches superficially. As no one 
can teach all he knows so one must know a subject thoroughly 
before he can teach it thoroughly. 

— /. N. Patrick. 

In considering a teacher's qualifications the power of exacting 
an interest in the recitations of his school may not be overlooked. 
No man can be successful for any length of time without this. 
This comprises what is usually implied by aptness to teach. 

—David P. Page. 

Let me put this before you. Your class is reading history. 
They come across the narrative of the battle of Marathon ; the 
lesson -hearer examines them on the facts and puts at the top of 
his class the boy who writes them down most accurately from 
memory. Well, what has he written down? an auctioneer's cat- 
alogue of a series of actions. 

—Edward Thring. 

The aim of the teacher should be to make himself useless. In 
other words, the school should aim to lift the pupil to the plane of 
an independent thinker, capable of giving conscious direction to 
his intellectual life and of concentrating all his powers upon any- 
thing that is to be mastered. 

—Nathan C. Schaeffer. 

16 



242 Co in mon Sense Didactics 

UNITY. 

No recitation should be conducted as complete in itself; each 
lesson should be fitted on to what has preceded and to what is to 
follow. Each recitation should begin with a brief review of what 
has been gone over recently, and should close with a "preview" 
of the next. 

—Ruric N. Roark. 

Another common mistake in giving lessons is the attempt to 
teach by the inductive method knowledge which can only be 
taught directly. The facts of history and biography, and some of 
the facts of geography and other elementary branches can only 
be taught directly, and the attempt to teach such knowledge by 
inductive or other indirect process is a waste of time and effort. 

— Emerson E. White. 

As a means toward these ends the pupil should have learned 
some portions of the subject-matter in an exact form, and should 
reproduce the substance of the lesson in his own language. 

— W. H. Payne. 
THORO UGH NESS. 

First, it must be taken into account that the word "thorough- 
ness" has no fixed meaning, but is a relative term. Thoroughness 
at one time and place is not thoroughness at another time and 
place. Thoroughness in one person is not thoroughness in 
another person, and thoroughness in the same person is not the 
same thing at different times. 

—B. A.Hinsdale. 

One of the main problems in teaching is how to get things 
remembered that are useful but not interesting. The ordinary- 
instance is the multiplication table. This is acquired by repeti- 
tion, and nobody who has not taught knows what a tremendous 
amount of repetition is required. 

—R. H. Quick. 

Child study will perhaps find its most profitable field of investi- 
gation in the matter of arrested development. If it can tell the 
teacher how far to push thoroughness toward the borders of 
mechanical perfection, and where to stop just before induration 
and arrest set in, it will reform all our methods of teaching. And 
it can and will do this. The new psychology, in its two phases of 
direct physiological study of brain and nerves, and its observation 
of child development, will vShow us how to realize by education 
the ideals of the highest civilization. The prolonged infancy of 
man will be in less danger of curtailment through vicious school 
methods. 

— William T. Harris. 
INQUIRY. 

There is no calling more delightful to those wno like it; none 
which seems such poor drudgery to those who enter upon it 
reluctantly or merely as a means of getting a living. He who 
takes his work as a dose is likely to find it nauseous. 

—J. G. Fitch. 



The Recitation 2^j 

It is said that Dr. Arnold, of Rugby, was once asked why he 
spent several hours daily in his study, preparing lessons which he 
had taught for years, and that his answer was, "I wish my boys 
to drink from a running stream, and not from a stagnant pool." 

—Einerson E. White. 

An ignorant man has been defined as one "whom God hat> 
packed uj^ and men have not unfolded." The best forces in such 
a one are perpetually paralyzed. Eyes he has, but he cannot see 
the length of his hand ; ears he has, and all the finest sounds in 
creation escape him ; a tongue he has, and it is forever blundering. 

—Newell Dwight Hillis. 
QUESTIONING. 

First, however, we may be fitly reminded that the art of 
putting questions is one of the first and most necessary arts to 
be acquired by a teacher. To know how to put a good question 
is to have gone a long way toward becoming a skillful and 
efficient instructor. 

—Selected. 
WRITTEN RECITA TION. 

What an eye-opener a searching written examination would be 
in schools where teachers talk and explain much, and the pupils 
recite very little; where the instruction is given largely in the 
form of running talks without a halt to test results ! 

—Enter son E. White. 

There are several good ends to be gained from a written reci- 
tation that are not reached by the oral, (i) It gives a drill in 
rapid writing, making the pupils use penmanship only as an 
instruvi£7it. (2) Writing a recitation accustoms the pupils to spell 
by eye. (3) Through a written recitation each pupil may be tested 
upon the whole lesson. (4) Writing the recitation affords a 
training in one of the most valuable forms of expression. 

—Ruric N. Roark, 

Questions for Examination 

1. What is the meaning of the word recite.? 

2. Name the three factors concerned in the recitation. 

J. What cautions are mentioned in connection with assigning 

the lesson? 
4.. What advantage has class recitation over individual 

instruction? 
J. What is the relation of the teacher to the recitation? 
6. Name the three principles which are generally recognized. 

7. What is the object of the recitation? 

8. In what respects is the written recitation sometimes advan- 

tageous? 
g. What is your idea of the meaning of "being thorough"? 
10. In the light of this lesson what, in your mind, constitutes a 
good recitation? 



244 Co mm 71 Sense Didactics 

Suggestions Worth Thinking About 

/. In what respects are recitations in my school defective? 
2. How am I accustomed to treat dull pupils? 
J. Do you ask the pupil to explain to you as if you did not 
understand? 

4. In what cases may a memoriter recitation be accepted? 

5. The mechanics of the recitation, how can they be abused? 



CHAPTER XIII 

ORAL INSTRUCTION 

By Man's Voice the Heart is Stirred 

The living word is the most powerful agent of instruction, 

— Rosenkranz, 

The living voice gives richer nourishment than reading. 

— Qiiintiliayi. 

Every addition to true knowledge is an addition to human 
power. While a philosopher is discussing one truth a million may- 
be propagated among the people. 

* — Horace Marin. 

Oral instruction presupposes on the part of the pupil : (a) willing- 
ness to learn ; (b) capacity or ability to learn ; (c) manifest interest 
in the subject before him. It also presupposes on the part of the 
teacher: (a) superior knowledge; (b) familiarity with the subject; 
(c) ability to communicate knowledge ; (d) ability to adapt knowl- 
edge to the mental capacity of the pupil. 

—Selected. 

A PRACTICAL age demands practical aims in 
education, as in everything else. To think, to 
speak, to act with accuracy, judgment, and prompt- 
ness, to hold all the intellectual powers in subjection 
to the reason and the conscience is the education 
demanded by the American people. 

The question of greatest interest to the teacher is 
not how to teach, but how to teach each branch so that 
it may best minister to the mental growth 

of the child. Improved methods of instruc- -^^^^ subject 

^ stated. 

tion should not have reference to the 

adoption of some favorite device or scheme, which 

too often is only learning to ride some other person's 

hobby, but to conducting the education of the child in 

245 



24-6 C 7)1 mo 91 Se?ise Didactics 

accordance with the constitution and laws of his being. 
We have attempted long enough to find out by experi- 
ment what methods may be successful. It will be a 
step in advance when educators study to know what 
must be successful, as settled by fixed and determined 
laws. The exacting spirit of the times is scrutinizing 
our educational work, — is trying it as by fire, whether 
it is built of wood, or hay, or stubble. If we expect 
to meet its demands, we must formulate our educational 
principles in terms intelligible to the common mind. 
Our courses of study, in their arrangement, in their 
subject matter, and in their presentation to the pupil 
must be in accordance with the most pressing wants of 
the child. He who works upon marble may spurn as 
worthless the chips which accumulate about his block; 
but the workman who works upon fine gold, gathers up 
as precious the very dust which falls under his file. 

In response to the demands of the times outlined 
above, there has of late years been a marked tendency 
Growth ^^ regard the power to do good oral work, 

of oral not alone in the primary, but in all grades, 

znstructioji. ^^ ^^^ q£ ^.j^^ y^^^^ ^^^ surest criterions of a 

competent teacher. The ability to thus instruct inde- 
pendently of the text-book, or at times in connection 
with it, distinguishes the best system of schools in 
Europe, and the normal schools of our own land are 
giving it more attention every year. A progressive 
teacher will always find pleasure as well as profit in 
cultivating on her own part the power of expression, so 
that she may be ready in illustrating the lesson, and 
apt in exciting interest in the minds of her pupils. 

Certain things are necessary to good oral work. 
First, the teacher who essays it must have absolute 
power over himself, mentally as well as bodily. Other- 



Oral I nstriLctioii 24^ 

wise it is impossible to control the class, and hold the 

attention of the pupils to the matter in hand. The 

room must be quiet, and the pupils at their ^, , 
J 1 r • 1 , . , , . Nature 

desks furnished with plenty of employ- of oral 

ment, that during the time of recitation i^istruction. 
the teacher may be free from the burden of discipline. 

Above all other work, oral instruction calls for close 
attention and concentration of thought. Hence the 
recitation periods should be short, especially when the 
pupils are young. The moment interest begins to lag, 
and a stage of fatigue is reached, the work should stop. 
If persisted in, after this, even to finish out the lesson, 
the children are sent to their desks tired and disgusted, 
and half the work must be done over at the next 
recitation. The duration of oral instruction must be 
determined from the pupil's standpoint, rather than 
the inspiration of the moment. Meaningless talk 
which has no objective end is a waste of the pupil's 
time. 

Make at least one point plain and implant it per- 
manently in the mind of the child. It is necessary to 

awaken interest and fix attention, but we ^ . 

^ ^ i-u . • , • ; hit er est 

must, at the same time, cultivate language o?ily one of 

and expression. To amuse the class is not i^^^ factors. 
the object of oral lessons. The subjects should be 
selected with care; the preparation should be thorough, 
and made with a view of presenting the subject in 
language adapted to the child's mental development. 

Do not take the assent of the child as a sure indica- 
tion that the oral work is well done. Very often the 
child, in order to get away from the class, or perhaps 
because of a disinclination to appear dull, will assent 
to everything you say. You cannot be sure of having 
attained your purpose until you gain from the pupil 



248 Commoji Se7ise Didactics 

a clear re-statement or reproduction of your explana- 
tion, given in his own language, not necessarily in 
yours. Sometimes a few questions will open the eyes 
of the teacher to the fact that the work of explanation 
has not been well done. It is not always the child's 
fault that he fails to understand. 

Oral instruction is the best possible means of break- 
ing the dead routine of the schoolroom. It can be 
„ ,^ made to impart life to what would other- 

of ov.al wise be a dead recitation. Through it the 

instruction, teacher stimulates the child's mind to pre- 
sent action, and awakens a desire for further investi- 
gations. 

Donald G. Mitchell, in one of his books, says of 
Shakespeare: "No, no; this man did not go about 
in quest of newness; only little geniuses do that; but 
the great genius goes along every commonest road- 
side, looking on every commonest sight of tree or 
flower, of bud, of death, of birth, of flight, of labor, of 
song; leads in old tracks, deals in old truths, but with 
such illuminating power that they all come home to 
men's souls with new penetrative force and new life in 
them. He catches by intuition your commonest 
thought and my commonest thought, and puts them 
into new and glorified shape." 

Mrs. Browning in Aurora Leigh says: 

. . . Earth 's crammed with heaven, 
And every common bush afire with God ; 
But only he who sees takes off his shoes. 

Another purpose of oral instruction is so to interest 
the pupil in the subject that he may be willing, and 
even anxious, to learn. Every day's work should 
increase his capacity or his ability to master the lesson 
of the next day. It is too often the fault of oral 



Oral Iiistriic tio7i 24g 

instruction that there is no growth in it. One teacher 
succeeds where another fails, in oral work, not because 
he knows more or is better prepared, but because he 
has cultivated the ability to stand before his class and 
impart knowledge. Joined with this there must always 
be the skill to adapt the knowledge which the teacher 
possesses, to the mental capacity of the pupil. Because 
a teacher knows a certain point and sees it clearly him- 
self, is not a sign thatthe pupil understands it or grasps it. 

The preparation of the teacher must also have regard 
to right use of language. This includes more than 
the grammatical construction of sentences, 
although that is very essential. Simplicity, Laiiguage 
the employment of short words which are 
of common use and within the child's vocabulary; con- 
ciseness, an avoidance of any redundancy of words; 
clear expressions, such as are easily comprehended, 
are some of the essentials to be studied by the suc- 
cessful oral instructor. 

Some one says of a writer: "He touches the 

daisies and the roses with tints that keep them always 

in freshest, virgi'n, dewy bloom; and he fetches the 

forest to our eye with words that are brim full of the 

odors of the woods and of the waving green boughs." 

The skillful teacher can do all this. It will not do, 

however, for him to depend for his language upon the 

inspiration of the moment. If he does he runs the 

risk of a bad failure. 

As a general thing, technical terms are to be avoided, 

especially with young children. Yet the teacher 

should not go too far out of his way to avoid ^ ._, 
u ^ , 1 • , , , Avoid 

such terms, when their use would be technical 

preferable. Whenever new words are used, terms. 
every possible pains should be taken to make the 



2jO Co mm 71 Sense Didactics 

children familiar with them, so that they may 
recognize them when used again. It is especially 
necessary in oral work that you make sure of the 
ground as you go over it the first time. It is one of 
the advantages of oral instruction that the teacher goes 
straight to the mark, and avoids the round-about ways 
which confuse and weary the child, if they do not 
disgust him with all learning. 

The following, taken from an English work, illustrates 
the point: 

"Once upon a time, for instance, a master was about 
to give a lesson on marble to some small boys, and 
began, for some occult reason, by asking his class to 
tell him the names of various stones. He thus elicited 
hearthstone, blue-stone, granite, kerbstone, sand- 
stone—everything but marble. At last he tried 
another tack. 'Did you ever,' he asked, 'go for walks 
on Sunday — in the churchyard?' 'Yes, sir,' said a 
little boy. 'And what do you see there?' 'The 
tombstones.' 'Well, don't those remind you of 
another kind of stone? Think, boys, think!' 'Please, 
sir, brimstone.' " 

Now, this teacher should have told his boys with- 
out any preface that he was going to give them a lesson 
on marble; there was not the least reason for beginning 
his work by asking them to guess what was in his 
mind. 

It is not, by any means, the province of oral 
instruction to make the rough places smooth and the 

^, ^ crooked places straight; in other words, to 

1 he pyoD- ^ o ' 

i7ice of oral provide a royal road to knowledge. If oral 
instruction, ^qj-^^ jg done in the right way, and in the 
true teaching spirit, it will draw upon the thinking, 
reasoning, and observing faculties of the child much 



Oral Instruction 2ji 

more strongly than the lesson from the text-book. 
Some teachers take it for granted that oral instruction 
is very easy work In the way they do it, it is easy 
work and amounts to nothing in the end. They simply 
"multiply words without knowledge." 

In the lower grades oral instruction stands out as 
the prominent work of the school. As we ascend in 
the grades, it gradually loses its prominence and gives 
place to the text-book, which it supplements until, in 
the upper grades and in the high school, its chief use 
is to explain and elucidate the work of the book. In 
every recitation some of the work should be oral. In 
no other way can interest be awakened and kept alive. 
The pupils follow the words of the teacher and catch 
their inspiration from his eyes and voice. 

The province of oral instruction seems to be three- 
fold: (a) instruction furnishing information; (b) 
explanation; (c) stimulating the pupil to draw upon his 
resources, or to think. As concerns the pupil, it 
serves this triple purpose: (a) cultivation of continuity 
of speech; (b) inducing him to comment in his own 
words upon what he has learned from outside sources; 
(c) quickening his perceptive faculties, or leading him 
to observe and discover for himself. 

The effort which good oral instruction calls for from 

individual members of the class serves a very valuable 

purpose. Providing the construction of the 

languag-e used is correct, there should be Freedom 
^ ^ , . ' . essential. 

much freedom in oral instruction on the 

part of teacher and pupils. There was, for a time, a 

disposition to require that answers to questions always 

should take the form of a complete sentence. There 

is too much formality about this. It is not natural, and 

places the child at a great disadvantage. He is 



2^2 C 7117710 11 Se7ise Didactics 

required to do something at school which he does not 
do naturally at home or on the playground. Oral 
instruction is simply conversation in its best form, and 
success depends very much upon putting the child at 
ease during the recitation. (See page 229.) 

Remember, however, that oral instruction loses 
much of its real worth when the teacher, in his eager- 
ness to impart knowledge, or to awaken an interest on 
the part of the class, does nearly all the talking and 
the pupils little or none. "The between method," as 
it is called, is not well suited for common-school work. 
Encourage pupils to ask questions of each other, to 
make statements, to interpose objections, and to 
express their thoughts independent of the teacher. It 
was a fine criticism which a visitor made when he said 
to the teacher, "That was a good recitation. I only 
wish you had given the class a chance to try their 
hand at it. Do you ever let them do any of the 
reciting?" 

The importance of the general subject of oral instruc- 
tion is much broader than object or illustrative lessons, 
embracing explanation, questions, and all matter 
designed to supplement the text-book. At least one- 
half of the work of an ordinary school day is included 
under the head of oral instruction. For this reason 
the subject deserves a more careful consideration than 
it usually receives. 

There are but few, if any, schools in the land in 
which text-books could be abandoned, and oral instruc- 
tion in each branch substituted. The main purpose of 
oral instruction is to awaken thought and arouse the 
activities of the mind, but not to supplant the text. 
Such instruction is adapted for use when the pupils are 
too young to use a text-book, or when no suitable 



Oral I nstrii c tion 2^j 

text-book is at hand. It also has an important use 
when, as is often the case, the text-book in the hands 
of the pupils is not sufficiently explicit and clear upon 
every point of the lesson. In every class there will be 
pupils who do not and cannot understand the words 
used in the book, until the teacher supplies simpler 
illustrations 

With this in view, the teacher must make a thorough 
preparation for his work. It will not do to trust to 
chances, or to suggestions prompted at the moment. 
Such suggestions are often pointless and irrelevant. 

The custom prevalent in many schools of separating 
oral instruction from the text-books is not entirely 
praise-worthy. Even in what are usually termed 
general exercises, reference must often be made to 
information gained from books, and the sources from 
which such information can be obtained must be 
pointed out. In no other way is the skill of the 
teacher more clearly revealed than in her ability to 
intersperse oral instruction in connection with recita- 
tion from the text-book. 

Not the least -of the advantages which accrues to 

oral instruction is that through it the teacher frequently 

is able to vary or diversify methods to 

meet the individual wants of the pupil. It of diversi- 

doesn't take very much of a teacher to fyi^^g 
1 ^u 1 u i. ^ 1 • 4.U 1 inethods. 

hear the lesson; but to enliven the lesson, 

to illuminate the chief points, to fasten it in the mind 
of the child an*d to awaken within him the desire to 
know more, is the real criterion of a good teacher. 

Not alone the capacity of the teacher to give instruc- 
tion in this way is to be considered, but the capacity 
of the pupil to receive and digest it. Formal instruc- 
tion, as given in the text-book, loses very much of its 



2^4 Common Se?ise Didactics 

terror to the unwilling pupil, and gains an additional 

attraction for him who is willing, when the living 

voice of the teacher directs the work. 

To be successful in illustrative teaching, it is essential 

that those who are to teach in village and country 

,, , . schools should be able to construct forms, 

Making . . ' 

simple solids, maps, charts, and simple apparatus, 

apparatus. ^^ very little expense. I say it with 
reverence akin to awe, as one who may be charged 
with trifling with sacred things, that no reading of 
psychology, no depths of pedagogical lore, no study 
of educational history, no knowledge of methods 
obtained from books, can compensate for a lack of 
that power which enables the school teacher to stand, 
crayon in hand, before the blackboard and illustrate 
the lesson, or to construct apparatus from the cheap 
articles to be obtained at the country store, or to use 
the things of common life to make clear the truths of 
nature to the minds of the wondering pupils. 

Occasionally some ingenious boy or girl will devise 
and make a piece of apparatus which will be useful 
in your work. Such a tendency is always to be 
encouraged. It adds fresh interest to the subject and 
stimulates others to exercise their skill in the same 
way. Even when it is rude in its construction, such 
an appliance should receive commendatory notice by 
being used during the recitation. 

In no way can you be so helpful to the children 
under your care as by presenting to them, in an 
attractive form, information worth remembering. Do 
not, however, dwell too long upon unimportant facts, 
do not try to illustrate and make plain what every child 
understands as well as his teacher. Besides, it is well 
to leave some points which are not quite clear at that 



Oral Instruction 



255 



time, for the pupils to think over and investigate for 
themselves. 

It should be understood that oral instruction cannot 
be carried on successfully without any effort on the 
part of the pupil. Too often the pupil j,. , 

looks upon it as a leisure hour, during must make 
which the teacher takes the laboring oar, ^"^ ^J'ort. 
and they are only passengers. The object ot oral 
instruction is not to cram the pupil with certain dry 
facts, nor is it to require him to state in his own words 
truths or facts so commonplace that every one has 
observed them. This commandment is prominent in 
the teacher's decalogue: Thou shalt not cram thyself 
with superficial knowledge that thou mayest appear 
learned beyond thy fellows, nor shalt thou cram thy 
pupil lest by so doing thou destroyest his desire to 
know. Blaikie says: "Cramming is a species of 
intellectual feeding neither preceded by appetite nor 
followed by digestion." Cramming is simply a 
synonym for shamming. 

To cultivate and draw out the observing powers of the 
child is the purppse of this kind of work. Often it is 
necessary to give the child an outline of what the work 
is to be, and to expect of him a certain amount of 
preparation as a prerequisite to a successful recitation. 
He may be asked to observe certain things on his way 
to and from school, to bring certain objects which may 
be used as illustrations, as a means of connecting him 
with the lesson and the lesson with him. It is a step 
in advance when the pupil is led to say: "I knew 
that before, but I never thought of it." As a teacher 
must observe and reflect for himself, so he must 
skillfully lead the pupil along until, in turn, he 
observes and reflects for himself. 



2j6 Commo?i Sense Didactic s 

Let me ask you this question: Can you teach? I 
do not mean can you keep school? That is not so 
difficult a thing to do. Make the children 
teachV^ walk on tip-toe; keep the room as still 
as the grave, while you sit at your table, 
book in hand, and hear the recitation. Keep the 
pupils on an eternal dress parade, inculcate the idea 
that whispering and laughing are among the sins not 
to be forgiven; report 97 per cent attendance, and the 
thing is about done. 

Order and discipline are very valuable as a means, 
but they are useless, and even vicious, when they are 
made the end. The best disciplinarian is not always 
the best teacher. The most valuable acquisition a 
teacher can possess is the power to teach; to stand 
before her class, and with or without a book, explain 
and illustrate, drawing upon her own resources until the 
subject matter of the lesson is fully brought within the 
comprehension of the child. 

The chief function of the teacher is to secure 
independent mental activity on the part of the pupil. 
This thought was in the mind of Philip of Macedon 
when he entrusted his son Alexander to the tutorship 
of Aristotle with the one direction: "Make yourself 
unnecessary as soon as possible." 

Remember the motto at the beginning of this chapter, 
whenever you attempt to give Oral Instruction: 

By Man's Voice the Heart Is Stirred. 

Quotations Worth Reading 

NA TURE OF ORAL INSTRUCTION. 

The product of the school must be the free, enkindled soul, 
alive to observation, trained to habits of industry, original inquiry 
and artistic enjoyment — a creator in the world of action — a self- 
governing, independent-thinking and wealth-contributing citizen. 

— Preston W. Search. 



7' a I 1 71 s true ti 71 2§'/ 

Teacher-experience supplements child-experience ; the teacher 
stimulates and guides the efforts of the child, but its ideas are 
gained directly from things. This is oral work. 

— Henry Halderwood. 

Methods should vary according to the subject taught, for in 
knowledge itself there is great diversity. 

—Bacon. 
INTEREST A FACTOR. 

Dr. Andrew Hell says: "Of all subjects calculated to call forth 
a pupil's own efforts, those which give him something to do have 
the preference over those which merely give him something to 
say." 

—Preston W. Search. 

If the boy has to pick stones on the road or to handle hammer 
and drill in a quarry, all the more need of his learning to see the 
beautiful around him, and to read in nature such messages as will 
cheer and encourage him in his toil. 

— Sarah L. Arnold. 
PROVINCE OF ORAL INSTRUCTION. 

In the physical world, the earth, the rock, the tree, the plant, 
the flower, the fruit, the beast, the bird, the fish — what illustrative 
material is found for the lower as well as the higher grades, com- 
bining the sweetest pleasure with the highest use ! 

— George Howland. 

Draw the subjects of oral exercises, not from collections' con- 
structed at pleasure to complicate the difficulties of language, but 
from matters of current interest, from an incident in the school, 
from the lessons of the day, from passages in sacred history, in 
the history of France, or in a recent geography lesson. 

-IV. H. Payne. 

It is chiefly by the means of the living voice that scholars can 
be readily inspired ; it is only when the eyes meet and expression 
and gestures are seen and tones are heard, that there arises that 
subtle and indefinable sympathy between teacher and taught, 
v^'hich is so essential to the intellectual life of the scholar. 

— /. G. Fitch. 

As a leading influence in this direction the pupil must be 
taught to value his work. That he may do this it must have 
something of permanence in its preparation, making it possible to 
preserve it, and, finally, adequate means for keeping it must be 
provided. To this end pupils should never write, paint nor draw 
upon scraps of paper, nor should they ever use poor pens or bad 
ink. 

— Wilbur S.Jackman. 

The preceptor should employ every means in his power to 
guard his pupils against using obscure terms, or words without 
definite ideas attached to them. To this effect objects and facts 
must be brought under their notice in very rapid succession. 

—Selected. 
17 



2^8 Coffimon Sense Didactics 

Questions for Examination 

/. What does oral instruction presuppose on the part of the 

teacher? 
2. Name one criterion of a good teacher. 
J. In oral instruction what caution is given as regards the use 

of language? 

4. What double purpose does oral instruction serve on the 

part of the pupil? 

5. The relation of oral instruction to the text-book? 

6. When may you be reasonably sure that the child compre- 

hends your meaning? 

7. Name any advantages accruing from oral instruction. 

8. What part should the pupil take in oral instruction? 

9. What do you understand by the expression, "The dead 

routine of the schoolroom"? 
10. Define the term oral instruction. 

Suggestions Worth Thinking About 

/. Are we ready to dispense with text-books? 

2. What do we mean by cramming the children's heads? 

J. Prepare an outline for an oral lesson in geography. 

4. There is danger of falling into the ruts in oral as well as 

text-book instruction. 

5. What are the most prevalent faults of text-book instruction? 



CHAPTER XIV 

MEMORY 

Man's Best Servant 

Memory is the act of recalling the picture of a past experience. 

—A. R. Taylor. 

Not only what the child now understands but what is within 
the probable range of his understanding may be memorized. 

—Selected. 

In order to commit to memory the attention should be undi- 
vided. This faculty, more perhaps than any other, requires 
freedom from disturbing influences. 

— Francis B. Palmer. 

We all know that a teacher may know facts enough about 
history to pass an ordinary examination very creditably, and yet 
know them to very little purpose because he knows them in a 
purely mechanical way 

— /. P. Gordy. 

The great passages of the Bible may be read and committed to 
memory years before they can be logically analyzed. A glimpse 
of the Divine Majesty, a view of the future glory, a touch of the 
celestial fire will come into the heart and life of a little child from 
a lesson that he will never fully comprehend. 

—B. A. Hinsdale. 

TO HAVE an accurate and retentive memory is 
one of the essential equipments for business or 
professional life. How to train it in the child, so that 

it may be most serviceable to him in his 

^. r ^ J. /?/W^/ use 

mature years, is a matter or great moment, of memory. 

There is no question but that the memory, 
like any other faculty of the mind, can be strength- 
ened by use. No greater good can come to a youth 
than to be placed under the tuition of a person who 
knows how to train this faculty by judicious exercise. 

259 



26o Co?nmo7i Sense Didactic s 

The aim should be to develop the "universal mem- 
ory." Many teachers have an exercise consisting 
mostly of poetry to be committed to memory and recited 
by the entire school, under the impression that they 
are thus building up and strengthening the memory. 
Such an exercise has its value in a restrictive sense only. 
This course makes it easier for the child to learn poetry. 
Dates in history, facts in geography, rules in 
arithmetic, may be memorized in the same way, with- 
out strengthening the memory as a whole. 

The only sensible course seems to be that which 
regards memory as an objective point in every 
exercise of the school, and one never to be lost sight 
of. 

There are two extremes to be avoided. One of them 
is to regard memory of such importance that it is to 
be cultivated even to the neglect of other faculties. 
The other is that memory, in itself alone, is of little 
practical significance, and worthy of no especial atten- 
tion. The truth is, that a ready memory is of great 
use as an efficient aid to other faculties, and that only 
in its relation as determining the efficiency of the 
working whole can its real value be estimated. 

Taylor, in The Study of the Child, says that "Mem- 
ory is the act of recalling the picture of a past expe- 
rience." Other definitions are given at the 
memory? conclusion of this chapter. I quote also 
what Taylor further says in this connec- 
tion, because it contains so much truth. "Its 
(memory's) value depends upon its accuracy, its 
rapidity and comprehensiveness. Without memory 
there could be no progress in knowledge getting. 
Perception makes little advancement if memory is not 
following closely behind." These words form a com- 



Memory 261 

plete refutation of the views of no inconsiderable 
number of teachers who affect to regard the cultivation 
of memory as of minor importance. 

In a general sense, special training in one subject 
tends rather to weaken than to strengthen memory. 
The same is true of memorizing anything for temporary 
purposes only. The geologist has a memory for 
geological facts alone; so the chemist, for chemical 
terms; the historian, for important dates; and the 
mathematician, for rules and formulas. But the 
memory which is most serviceable in daily life is that 
which comes to a man's aid when it is most needed, 
and upon the assistance of which he can always depend. 
Some authors call it a rational memory, thus dis- 
tinguishing it from that which is more mechanical in 
its nature. Thus when we say a pupil has a good 
memory, we simply mean that he has the power to 
reproduce that which at some time has become fixed in 
his mind, and to state it in the plainest and most simple 
language. (See page 227.) 

Avoiding, as far as possible, psychological terms, we 
may state that the subject under consideration by the 
child is fixed in his mind through attention, study, and 
thought. Interest is here an important factor. 

To apprehend or to understand is the first step. The 
explanation of a difficult point in a lesson is remem- 
bered by those of the class who comprehend ste'ds in 
each step, but it is forgotten by those who memoriz' 
give no attention to what is going on. ^^'^■ 
Many teachers fail to comprehend that the pupil's ina- 
bility to recite is often due, not to a defective mem- 
ory, but to the teacher's inability to awaken mind or 
arouse any real interest. 

The next step is that of retention in the mind. Here 



262 Co7nfno7i Sense Didactics 

constant repetition and daily drill is valuable and 
necessary. Reviews should be frequent. Questions 
should be asked with the intention of bringing out 
certain valuable points in preceding lessons, and of 
thus testing the pupil's memory. The teacher must 
make much allowance here for different minds. Some 
retain with great readiness, others with the utmost 
difficulty. There is no doubt, however, that in the 
normal mind the power of retention can be greatly 
increased by careful training. 

The third step is reproduction; bringing back into 
actual existence or into life that which has been re- 
tained for a longer or shorter time in the mind. That 
remains the longest, and is most easily reproduced, 
which made the deepest impression at the time of 
acquiring. "It made such an impression upon me at 
the time that I have never forgotten it," is a very com- 
mon expression, but it conveys the exact truth. 

Expression, or language, plays an important part in 
reproduction. The ready use of words is more marked 
in one child than in another. The three steps, acquisi- 
tion, retention, reproduction, constitute the unit of the 
art of memory. I cannot reproduce what I have not 
retained. I cannot retain what I do not acquire. I 
cannot acquire what I have not made my own through 
application and study, incited by interest in the work. 

Whether we call memory a faculty of the mind, or 
regard it as a function of the intellect, it can be culti- 
vated and strengthened by constant use. It 
of memory. ^^^^^ takes equal rank with reason or judg- 
ment, and is essential to the right exercise 
of these other powers. 

To overburden the memory with words and facts 
having no relation to each other, or to life, is one 



Me Tnory 26J 

extreme to be avoided. To neglect the cultivation of 
memory, or to treat its growth as of incidental impor- 
tance, is the other extreme into which too many- 
teachers have fallen. Between these extremes there is 
a happy medium, and in no way can the teacher show 
greater skill or do more for the child than in cultiva- 
ting in him a ready, retentive, accurate memory. The 
teacher must, however, keep constantly in mind that 
memory is a variable power; in some children naturally 
strong, in others naturally weak. Hence cultivation 
of the memory must be adapted to the wants of the 
individual child. 

What the child has learned he must be required to 
use as often as possible. Knowledge retained in the 
mind becomes dim and obscure through disuse. We 
say we have forgotten much that we learned in child- 
hood. It is only because such knowledge has been 
forced into the background by later acquisitions, which 
are of more immediate use to us in our daily vocation. 
It is by no means an indication of faulty instruction, 
that the child, at the end of the term, does not easily 
recall everything' which he learned at the beginning. 
For this reason final examinations are not a sure test 
of scholarship, or of fitness for promotion. 

One pupil, through the possession of a strong verbal 
memory and a ready use of language, obtains a high 
percentage. Another, because defective in these same 
particulars, obtains a low mark. It is possible that the 
latter has given more study and more thought to the 
subject than the former, and is better prepared for 
advanced work. Hence in this connection the teacher 
should observe the caution that, in the cultivation of 
memory, we must insist upon right habits of study. 
"Without attention, interest, thought, the most valua- 



264 C ommo7i Sense Didactics 

ble element of memory, the power to retain, will be 
weak and useless." 

The cultivation of the memory is too important to 
be left to chance. The teacher should have some care- 
Methodof fully devised plan, so that every day may 
cultivatio7i. witness growth in memory power. 

Some one says: "In a child a good memory is well 
known by these properties: that it is quick in receiv- 
ing, sure in keeping, and ready in delivering forth 
again." This implies close attention, interest, and 
language — three things very essential in order to arouse 
the memory to exertion and effort. Continual repeti- 
tion, likewise, is needed to deepen the impression. 
The mind retains only that which it makes its own. In 
this, also, "one day must help another." 

The child mind receives readily; its power to retain 
should grow with every year of school life. The mem- 
ory grows as our bodily organs grow, by constant use. 

So far as verbal memory gives us the power to repro- 
duce in the very words of the author, it is valuable. 
A more important office of memory is to enable us to 
reproduce general ideas, thoughts, or principles, and 
state them in our own words. The methods to be com- 
mended, then, are awakened interest, constant repeti- 
tion, and a grasp of the subject in its oneness. (See 
page 234.) 

Two points must be kept continually in mind. First, 
if a task is given to be learned by heart see to it that 
it is thoroughly memorized. Exactness is very impor- 
tant. Do not permit one word to be substituted for 
another, but use invariably the exact language of the 
author. To be able to quote the very words in which 
the idea is expressed by the writer, or speaker, is a 
most valuable acquisition. 



Memory 26§ 

The subject, however, should be adapted to tne age 
and mental capacity of the child. Physical conditions, 
as well, are to be regarded. I do not believe that the 
time of day is very important, under right environ- 
ments. Children should be fresh and vigorous during 
the last hour of the session if due regard is had to 
exercise, ventilation, and rest periods. 

In the second place, pupils must be trained to 
express the thoughts of others in their own words. A 
clear conception of the meaning of words, in their 
relation to each other and to the sentence as a whole, 
is necessary and must be obtained in order to make 
memory available for this usage. 

To have only memoriter recitations is to cultivate 
memory at the expense of other functions of the mind, 
while to have nothing memorized, "word for word as 
it is in the book," is to cultivate other functions to the 
neglect of memory. Either extreme should be care- 
fully avoided. Some one says: "Memory especially 
is an excellent preparatory school for the thinking 
activity." Unless the thinking powers are carefully 
exercised, memory becomes a useless function of the 
mind. 

A prominent author says that the three points to be 
observed in the cultivation of memory are attention, 
order, repetition. These are the very points Attention, 
which a good primary teacher observes in order, 
her work. But in order that a fact be ^^ 
apprehended with precision, it must be stated with 
precision. The language used by the teacher in stating 
the fact, becomes the basis of the language used by 
the child in reproducing it. 

Inaccurate observation, imperfect conception of 
truth, erroneous views of principles, are not the only 



266 Co fit 771 71 Se7ise Didactics 

indications of superficial scholarship. Inaccurate 
statements, incorrect use of language, a choice of words 
which does not convey the intended idea, are the 
strongest possible proofs that the subject has not been 
mastered in its full sense. Accuracy is the criterion of 
mental discipline. 

This is a slow process of rebuilding. It depends 
upon the association of ideas. I am unable to recall a 

certain event. A friend mentions some 

Recollection. • • i , . i -^.u •*. a • • *. 4. 

mcident connected with it, and in an instant 

the entire scene flashes upon me as fresh as though 
it happened but yesterday. There is also what we 
sometimes term sub-consciousness. The mind fre- 
quently retains knowledge which it seems unwilling, 
at the moment, to give out. A friend once said to me: 
"What is the name of a cousin of yours whom we both 
knew?" Neither of us could recall it. We finally 
gave it up, but days afterward it came into my mind 
although I was then not even thinking of it. 

We should not be too prompt to blame a pupil who 
declares: 'T know, but I cannot tell." Perhaps he 
has not the ready language with which to clothe his 
ideas. Possibly his sub-consciousness is not prepared 
to reproduce what the mind, in truth, possesses. We 
have, all of us, been in the same position and needed 
time in which to collect our ideas. Instead of scolding 
or punishing, give the boy time to reflect, and encour- 
age him to exercise his powers of recollection. 

Recollection is memory vitalized. The will is called 

to our aid. The laws of association are appealed to; 

ideas of time, place, and circumstance are 

Kinds of called upon to help rebuild that which the 
recottectton. . , , ^ , . , . , • , „, . . 

mind has for the time laid aside, ihis is 

what is often called voluntarv memory. 



M c mory 26y 

On the other hand, iiivohintary memory calls up, 
v'thout any conscious effort on our part, some past 
experience which the mind contains. This is what we 
mean when we speak of remembrance. We cannot 
always control this kind of memory. We ought not, 
therefore, to chide too harshly a child for inattention. 
His mind is busy with some remembrance; for 
instance, he is associating the ball game of yesterday 
with the one he is to play after school. He is very 
attentive — but it is to a remembrance rather than to 
the lesson in hand. The only remedy is to make the 
lesson so interesting as for a time to shut the ball game 
out of his mind. At times some motives must be 
placed before him, or his will must be stimulated so as 
to interrupt, for the present, this stream of remem- 
brances upon which he loves to float. 

It follows that if a child has studied a lesson until he 
has made the ideas contained in it his own, he will 
naturally fall into the habit of using the words of the 
book which he has studied. The idea will come to his 
mind, clothed in the words in which it was presented 
to the mind. A memoriter recitation is not of neces- 
sity an evil; it becomes an evil only when the teacher 
regards it as the criterion of a good recitation. 

The tendency is to forget that memory precedes 
reason and judgment. The power to reason correctly 
is an outgrowth which comes to maturity late in the 
child's education. It does not make its appearance 
until the storehouse of memory has a generous supply 
of facts upon which reason may base its theory. It is 
not always a misapplication of time and effort to 
require the child to memorize a mass of dry facts. 

It is not a waste of time to place the rough, unsightly 
stones in the ground for the foundation, before the 



268 Common S e ?ts e Didactics 

building is raised. The building itself may have the 
proportions of the Parthenon. Its pillars may be 

crowned with the delicate tracery of the 
of ineniory Corinthian order, or they may preserve the 
and reco/- severe simplicity of the Doric or the Tuscan. 
lectioji. T^ 1 ^ i. • r 1 • t 

lowers and turrets may rise trom solid 

walls supported by massive buttresses, but if the 
foundations are not compact and firm, the skill of the 
architect and the labor of the workman will not pre- 
vent the utter ruin of the edifice. 

' If we neglect the cultivation of the child's memory, 
we leave him destitute of that upon which reason and 
judgment must be based. The child comes to the reci- 
tation to recite. He is to recite not what he has dis- 
covered by his own efforts, but what he has learned 
from his book. If he has committed his lesson word 
for word, it is not a mortal sin. The foundation for 
the next step is complete. 

If he has learned it — as is too often the case, in our 
dislike for memoriter work — in a careless, slipshod, 
^ ^^ half-guessing way, he should be sent back 
involves to his seat to prepare his lessons. To "help 
study. j^jj^ Q^j|." y^y questions, to attempt to draw 

out his ideas when, in fact, he has no ideas about it, 
is to do him an injury. He may need explanations 
upon difficult points, but it is not his teacher's business 
to master his lesson for him. After his lesson is 
learned, and he gives evidence, by his recitation, of 
hard study, then his teacher may and ought to question 
him closely and keenly, in order to bring out the ideas 
of the author and to ascertain to what extent. they 
have been made his own. There is no good school 
without earnest study, and he is not a good teacher 
who does not require it. (See page i8.) 



Me m ry 26g 

With the youngest children, especially, diligent 
study involves the use of memory. What they remem- 
ber they should be required to remember accurately; 
what they state, they should be required to state accu- 
rately. The greatest abuse of memory, the abuse from 
which our schools have the most to fear, is to leave 
it unused and untrained. I do not assert that no other 
faculty is to be called into service. I do, however, 
assert that a ready and accurate memory, as an essen- 
tial element in the child's education, is to be carefully 
cultivated. 

It is said of William M. Evarts, who was one of the 
most famous lawyers of his day, and who was called to 
fill many high offices, that in his youth he found that 
he could not depend upon his memory, even to recall 
the events of the day. He at once set himself the 
task of correcting this fault. At noon he would recall 
all the events of the morning, and Saturday night he 
went over in his mind the occurrences of the week. He 
continued this habit until he had his memory trained 
so that he could depend upon it. He was accustomed, 
in later years, to say that his success in life was to be 
attributed to his ready, accurate memory. 

It is said, with some truth, that our schools fail to 
make good scholars. One reason is to be found in 
that style of teaching which substitutes the Miscella- 
crudest oral work in place of a carefully neotis. 
prepared text-book; which assumes that the pupil is to 
be only a passive recipient of such knowledge as his 
instructor prepares for him — knowledge which does not 
stimulate him to work, to grow strong with mental 
exercise, but sends him out to face the real difficulties 
of life with neither ability to think nor courage to 
execute. 



2JO Co mm 71 Sense Didactics 

We are charged with cramming the children. There 
is no occasion for cramming, where hard study has 
been the rule. If the child comes to the upper grades 
unprepared for assiduous work; if his statements are 
inaccurate; if his memory is not to be trusted; then 
either he crams continually to pass his examination, or 
frets and worries over his failures until he leaves the 
school in disgust. It is not true that a ready memory 
always indicates a good scholar; but it is true that 
many good scholars find their work doubled because they 
were not trained in youth to rely upon their memory. 

Dr. Hammond writes, in a recent work, that many 
children are injured by the study required of them out 
of school. He may state the fact correctly; yet a 
more intimate acquaintance with our public school 
system would perhaps convince him that during the 
child's first years at school, a training having especial 
reference to the use and abuse of memory would render 
those studies, which are now so injurious, only those 
needful to a healthy mental growth. 

Few children are ever harmed by simple, honest 
brain work. The brain, wonderful in its mechan* :m, 
delicate in its texture, the birthplace of great ideas, 
the home of spiritual life, works in perfect harmony 
with all the baser organs, when nature stands as warden 
at the gate. Do not forget that memory, as an active 
power connecting the present with the past, is 

Man's Best Servant. 

Quotations Worth Reading 
wha t is mem or y? 

Memory is the result of attention, and attention is the concen- 
tration of all the powers of the mind upon the matter in hand. 
The art of memory is largely based upon the art of paying 
attention. 

—Selected. 



Memory 2^1 

Memory is the store-house in which are deposited the sensa- 
tions, the facts and the ideas, whose different combinations form 
what is called intelligence. 

— Helvetius. 

When the mind acts in such a way that it records, retains and 
restores the ideas gained by its own activity, it is said to perform 
an act of memory. 

— Dexter and Gar lick. 

In order that the memory shall be counted excellent the indi- 
vidual must show readiness in acquisition, tenacity in retention, 
and promptness in reproduction and recognition. 

—H. T. Smith. 
CULTIVA TION. 

The first condition for cultivating the memory is forming habits 
of fixed attention. Nothing can be remembered that is not 
attended to. A second condition for cultivating the memory is 
order. A third condition is repetition. 

—Mark Hopkins. 

One must put thought into the act of memory. The memory 
if only strong enough to retain a single item with effort will grow 
stronger by that effort, will soon retain two items, and finally 
others in vast numbers and without effort. 

— IVilliam 71 Harris. 

That memory may perform its functions without failure it is 
necessary that an idea should be forcibly impressed upon the 
mind at once, or that it should be repeated a sufficient number of 
times to make a deep impression. 

—James Johonnot. 

Colburn's rules for memory study are worth careful thought, 
{i) Learn one thing at a time; (2) Learn it thoroughly; (3) Learn 
its connection with other things. 

Baldwin's Rules: (i) Take a deep interest in what you study ; 
(2) Give your entire attention to what you study; (3) Thoroughly 
assimilate and associate the old and the new ; (4) Push effort to 
complete mastery. 

—Joseph Baldwin. 

Joseph Baldwin enumerates these mistakes in memory culture : 
(i) Stated examinations and reviews at long intervals; (2) Giving 
words without ideas ; (3) Memorizing what has not come into the 
experience; (4) Studying from books instead of Nature; (5) 
Crowding the mind with non-essentials. 

RECOLLECTION. 

Recollection is memory under control and direction of the will. 
By utilizing the laws of association and suggestion the will 
rebuilds a former experience, slowly or rapidly as the degree of 
familiarity may permit. 

—A.R. Taylor. 



2J2 Co mm OIL Se?ise Didactics 

Recollecting is remembering by an effort of will. All recol- 
lecting is remembering, but all remembering is not recollecting. 
Recollecting is a kmd of remembering. 

—J. P. Gordy. 

KINDS OF MEM OR V. 

In education what may be described as a "local" or "verbal" 
memory is of slight influence in comparison with an intelligent or 
rationalizing memory. 

— Henry Calderwood. 

Memory may be distinguished as spontaneous and intentio7ial. 
In spontaneous memory the will is passive, the representative act 
being involuntary; in intentional memory the will is active and 
directing, and the representative act is voluntary. 

— Emerson E. White. 

Kant classifies memories as follows: 

1. The Mechanical Memory, which depends on associations by 
contiguities. 

2. The Ingenious Memory, which endeavors to trace out more 
or less fanciful similarity between things. Mnemonics are an 
outcome of this type of memory. 

3. The Judicious Memory, which depends mainly upon the 
natural working of the law of similarity. 

—Dexter and Garlick. 

ADVANTAGES OF MEMORY AND RECOLLECTION. 

If the powers of observation, attention, memory and discrim- 
ination are rightly trained in school the whole after-life of the 
pupil may become a continuous source of education ; for in 
society, as in school, the sources of knowledge are reading, con- 
versation, observation and reflection. 

—John Swett. 

"Experience teaches us," says Dr. Schwab, of Germany, 
"more and more, from day to day, that a child will retain in its 
memory only what is incorporated into its life. It will forget 
what it has seen or heard, but rarely or never what it has accom- 
plished through its own efforts." 

—Selected. 

MISCELLANEOUS. 

That only is to be learned by rote that is unchangeable. 
Extracts of poetry, and sometimes of prose, those crystals of 
thought that must remain as pure, as durable as the diamond, 
may well be memorized and made familiar. 

— George Howland. 

The activity of this power (memory) is, in fact, the measure of 
the child's growth in mental stature and strength. 

—RusselPs ''Lecture to Young Teachers."'' 



Me mory 2y^ 

The words that are recited and written to-day should be woven 
and wreathed into other figures and expressions to-morrow, and 
thus repetition, one of the most efficient means of memory's aid 
becomes invested with all the charm of novelty. 

—George Howland. 

An unnatural memory may be produced at the cost of reason, 
judgment and imagination, or the emotional aptitudes. This is 
not a desirable result. 

—Selected. 

Questions for Examination 

/. Define memory. 

2. Name the three steps which constitute the art of memory. 

J. How may memory be cultivated? 

4. How cultivate an exact memory? 

5. What is recollection? How different from memory? 

6. Is it always wrong for the child to recite in the words of his 

book? Explain. 
J. What is the relation of study to memory? 
S. Distinguish between voluntary and involuntary memory. 
9. Define verbal memory. 
10. What is the effect upon memory of special training in one 
subject alone' 

Suggestions Worth Thinking About 

7. What do you think of memory exercises? 
2. Is memory of equal importance with imagination, reason, 
etc.? 

J. What is meant by association of ideas? 

4. Of what educational treatise is Herbert Spencer the author? 
J". Who was Horace Mann? 



18 



CHAPTER XV 

IMAGINATION, ATTENTION, INTEREST 

"The Tunes Are Left Forever in the Strings" 

The village laborer, with the reverent heart, can be as wise as 
the wisest thinker and with equal justice. They are both full of 
light. Neither wants more. 

—Edward Thring. 

The imagination is the very secret and marrow of civilization. 
It is the very eye of faith. The soul without imagination is what 
an observatory would be without a telescope. 

— Henry Ward Beecher. 

We have long heard a good deal about interest as a means, but 
interest as an end ;is destined to have high value in the modern 
school. "Knowledge," says Herbart, "shall pass away, but 
interest remains." 

— Samuel T. Dutton. 

Sympathy between teacher and taught is a great means of 
maintaining the attention. The sympathetic teacher may have 
to work in a badly lighted, badly warmed school, and his teaching 
may not be psychologically sound, yet notwithstanding these 
drawbacks he will succeed in securing attention. 

— Dexter and Garlic k. 

NOAH PORTER defines imagination to be "the 
power to re-combine anew materials furnished 
by experience." It is, in fact, so closely combined 
with the act of memory that one cannot be 
tTon^^^^^' intelligently discussed without reference 
to the other. 
I remember the old schoolhouse which I attended in 
my youth. At once memory and imagination combine 
to call up the scene. The form of the building, the 
doorway, the interior, the arrangement of the desks, 
the mates who met me there, memory recalls them one 

274 



1 magi ?iati 72, Atte nti on, Inter e st 2'/§ 

by one; and as I dwell upon them, imagination pre- 
sents to my mind a perfect picture of the scene as I 
once knew it. Children have naturally very vivid 
imaginations; the mental images which they form may 
not always be correct, but they are keen and clear cut. 

Mental images are of two kinds; those which arise 
from remembering what we have learned by the use of 
one or more of our perceptive powers, and those which 
arise from pictures and descriptions, paintings of 
things which we have not seen but in which we are 
intensely interested. The latest authorities call the 
first kind of imagination Reproductive, and the second 
Constructive. 

We indulge, at times, in reminiscences; the past is 
summoned and old time friends, pleasant days, and 
events in which we took part years ago Rei)roduc- 
come fresh and vividly to mind. We pic- tiveimagi- 
ture real scenes which once existed, and ^^(^i^on. 
listen to voices which have long since passed away. 

And old time friends and twilight plays 
And starry nights and sunny days 
Come trooping up their misty ways, 
And life is young again. 

How does this differ from memory? I remember a 
person who lived in a certain place. The name is 
familiar to me. I know the town in which he resided, 
and the circumstances about him. But I cannot recall 
his features nor anything of his personality. In refer- 
ence to another person, also, my memory serves me to 
fix his location, the years in which I knew him, and 
the circumstances of his life. But, in addition, my 
imagination enables me to reproduce his features, his 
form, his voice, so that he exists as a living reality in 
my thoughts. I can see the color of his eyes and hair. 



2y6 Coni?non Sense Didactics 

the cast of his features, his height, and general appear- 
ance; and thus I rebuild the mental image through the 
aid of my imagination. 

We obtain satisfactory results only when reproduc- 
tive imagination and memory mutually assist each 
other. 

Constructive imagination serves another purpose. 
The child hears the fairy tale as his mother reads it to 
^ . him, and at once he conceives a mental 

tive i77iagi- picture which, for the time being, is as real 
nation, ^^ j^jj^ ^g though it were present before his 

eyes. So in his history and geography there is but 
little which brings up past experiences, and yet he 
constructs images of events, of famous buildings or 
noted persons; he travels over different routes and 
scans the landscapes, as eagerly as the actual traveler. 

The right cultivation and use of the imagination is 
worthy of important consideration on the part of the 
teacher. "Imagination is the spiritual power to which 
all instruction turns, and upon whose cooperation the 
success of all instruction depends. The pupil appre- 
hends the words of instruction only when his imagina- 
tion succeeds in illustrating them by corresponding 
images." 

The child has a very active imagination, and often 
he so constructs images that to him they seem alive. 
He tells you what you know to be untrue, but in his 
own mind he is not able to distinguish between the 
true and the false. He is not conscious of any attempt 
to deceive, and yet he is accused of lying and perhaps 
is punished. We sometimes say, "Where did the 
child get that idea?" He got it from something which 
he heard you say and which was not intended for his 
ears; he listened to you as you read something to the 



l7naginatio7i, Attention, Interest 2'jy 

school which he but half understood, and his imagina- 
tion supplied^the rest; he saw an incident in the street, 
on his way to school, and gathered there the materials 
for his constructive image. 

Children live real lives through their imagination. 
The doll which the little girl dresses and undresses, 

fondles and sings to sleep, is her child. A 

*^, , ^ r u- A Its value to 

wise mother takes advantage ot this and the child. 

teaches her to cut and sew the doll's 

dresses, to make up the bed in which it sleeps, to wash 

its clothes, and to care for it in many ways. The little 

boy rides his stick, and in his imagination it is a real 

horse. Soon he has a place for it which he calls a 

stable. After a time he discards it for a rocking horse, 

because that is nearer his ideal. Anon he wants his 

wheelbarrow and shovel that he may be at work in his 

garden or on his farm. In all phases of child life the 

imagination plays an important part, and is a source of 

enjoyment to the child. It is often a spur to his 

ingenuity and aids materially in developing his powers 

of invention. That which attracts his attention he 

wishes to imitate'. To do this, he invents the means, 

or converts to his use those already existing. Thus 

the circus which he and his mates plan in the barn is 

just as real as the one they saw last week in the tent. It 

gives them greater pleasure because they are the actors. 

The imagination needs both direction and cultivation: 

1. Furnish the child in various ways with a fund of 
ideas or of material suitable for the exercise of imagi- 
nation. This is largely oral work, but the jyi^^ction 
teacher may have recourse to story books, aiidcultiva- 
tales, and pictures. 

2. Give him the opportunity to exercise his repro- 
ductive imagination by recalling this knowledge, and by 



2y8 Common Sense Didactic s 

painting in words what he has in mind. He may be en- 
couraged to do this by drawing on his slate or on paper. 

3. Give the child paper cutting, clay modeling, illus- 
trative drawing, pictures, descriptive writing. At 
times direct him, but at other times let his ingenuity 
be his guide. 

4. He should exercise his constructive imagination 
in his language work. Let him invent his tales and 
illustrate them, or construct them from pictures and 
paintings and works of art. 

5. "Imagination is the great instrument by which 
we 'proceed from the known to the unknown'; it must 
therefore be brought into play in all fruitful acquisi- 
tion." If we attempt to follow the well-known maxim, 
"from the known to the unknown," the above quota- 
ion is true. 

Keep the child's imagination clean and sweet; let it 

exercise itself upon things pure and wholesome, but 

do not thwart it nor discourage its develop- 
A pure "^ , . , . 

zmagina- ment. Every architect has the plan in his 

Hon. mind before he puts it upon paper. The 

inventor appeals to his imagination for assistance in 
bringing his invention to perfection. The student of 
history plunges into the wilderness and helps the first 
settler build his log cabin; he goes on to the field and 
hears the roar of the battle; in the Senate chamber he 
listens to the eloquence of Webster or Clay; and all 
this by the aid of his imagination. 

The imagination helps the child to think, especially 
in the reading lesson. He cannot read with any emo- 
tion, with any intelligent idea of the author's thought, 
unless he sees with the author's eyes, hears with his 
ears, and feels with his heart. An old author says: 
"When thou readest, look steadfastly with the mind at 



Imagijio tion, Attention^ I?iterest 2yQ 

the things which the words signify. If there be ques- 
tion of mountains, let them loom before thee; if of the 
ocean, let its billows roll before thy eyes. This habit 
will give to thy voice even pliancy and meaning." 

Do not be too ready to blame the child for his day 
dreams, and accuse him of idleness. Some day the 
dreams may wax real, and because of them 
the life of the world become easier and '^f^'J^^i^f,' 
more cheery. It is true that children have 
strange and curious imaginings — some call them fan- 
tasies — which seem to arise from attempts to think of 
things far above their comprehension. 

To ask a child to tell us what is his idea of God or 
the angels is to ask him questions which the most 
learned theologians cannot answer. Yet certain wise 
school men do this and laugh at the crudity of the 
replies. A little girl, coming home from a walk with 
her father, asked her mother, "Mamma, didn't God 
make everything?" "Certainly, my dear; why do you 
ask me that?" "Well, I saw him this morning." 
"Saw whom?" "I saw God. He was in a black- 
smith's shop finishing off a horse he had just made. 
He had him all done except his shoes." 

Dr. Hillis calls the imagination the vision faculty. 
"It is also given to this vision faculty to redeem men 
out of oppression and misfortune, and 
through its intimations of royalty to lend Jf^^^'^Jj/'''^ 
victory and peace. Oft the days are full 
cf storms and turbulence; oft events grow bad as heart 
can wish; full oft the next step promises the precipice. 
There are periods in every career when troubles are so 
strangely increased that the world seems like an orb 
let loose to wander widely through space. In these 
dark hours some endure their pain and trouble through 



28o Common Sense Didactics 

dogged, stoical toughness. Then, men imitate the tur- 
tle as it draws in its head and neck, saying to misfor- 
tune: 'Behold the shell, and beat on that.' But, God 
be thanjced! victory over trouble has been ordained. 
In the blackest hour of the storm it is given to the 
vision faculty to lift man into the realm of tranquillity. 
As travelers in the jungle climb the trees at night and 
draw the ladder up after them, and dwell above the 
reach of wild beasts and serpents, so the soul in its 
higher moods ascends into the realms of peace and rest. 
In that dark hour just before Jesus Christ entered into 
the cold and darkness, and fronted his grievous suffer- 
ing, he called his disciples about him, and uttered that 
discourse beginning: 'Let not your hearts be troubled'. 
Strange wonder words, words of matchless genius and 
beauty." 

The following, taken from the School a?id Schoolmaster^ 
illustrates the use to which the imagination may some- 
times be put in dealing with children: "A lad of some 
talent, who had failed to be influenced by the rod, by 
medals, by the desire of pleasing his friends, or fear or 
love of his instructor, was awakened as from a sleep 
by a striking picture of the miserable condition of an 
old age spent without any of the resources which love 
of books can give. What was immediately before him 
did not touch him; but his imagination passed over 
youth and manhood, of which he felt secure, and dwelt 
upon old age; and the desire of being, at that period 
of his life, surrounded by friends and books, set him 
seriously at work." 

The art of paying attention is the art of concentrat- 
ing all the powers of the mind upon the 
Attention. , . , , • i .• 

subject under consideration. 

Attention is not a special function of the mind, like 



I ma gi?iatio7i. Attention, Interest 281 

memory. It is rather, as Dr. Hinsdale very aptly says 
in his Art of Study, an intellectual state or condition of 
the mind. The authors of Psychology in the Schoolroom 
use the following illustrations which any teacher can 
verify out of his own experience. 

(a) "Suppose I am looking at a small object by arti- 
ficial light. I cannot see it distinctly. I interpose a 
lens between my eye and the object. The light is con- 
centrated on the object and I see it distinctly. Now 
consciousness, like light, seems to increase in vividness 
in proportion as it is concentrated on one spot." 

(b) "Two boys are talking in an undertone in the 
class. The teacher is dimly conscious of a noise in the 
room; he thinks there is a noise, but is not certain. 
He begins to listen, to concentrate his mind, as it 
were, upon the supposed sound. He identifies it as a 
sound of conversation, and localizes the sound as com- 
ing from the two boys who are talking. The boys are 
talking no louder at the conclusion than at the begin- 
ning of the incident, but the teacher has by his act of 
attention given greater distinctness and vividness to 
his consciousness." 

But how shall the teacher command and retain the 
attention of the class? The first duty of the teacher is 
to determine in his own mind that he will 

have the attention of the class, and that he J^ow to hold 

attejition. 
will ?iot put up with inattention or indiffer- 
ence. Hart, in his I?i the Schoolroom, says: "This is 
half the battle. Let him settle it with himself, that 
until he does this, he is doing nothing; that without 
the attention of his scholars, he is no more a teacher 
than is the chair he occupies. If he is not plus, he is 
zero, if not actually minus. With this truth fully real- 
ized, he will come before his class resolved to have a 



282 Common Se7ise Didactics 

hearing; and this very resolution, written as it will be 
all over him, will have its effect upon his scholars. 
Children are quick to discern the mental attitude of a 
teacher. They know, as if by instinct, whether he is 
in earnest or not, and in all ordinary cases they yield 
without disputes to a claim thus resolutely put." 

A teacher once said to me, "In some way I fail to 
get the attention of the class. About half of them 
seem to be interested; the other half are thinking of 
something else." In a few days I spent an hour in 
her room, listening to a recitation. After the class 
passed out, I was able to say to her, "Your failure is 
due to the fact that the pupils do not believe you are 
in earnest. Once I notice you said, 'Please give me 
your attention.' For a moment they complied with 
your request, and the next moment their minds were 
off on an excursion somewhere. Your request should 
have been less of a request, and more of a command. 
My advice is that you proceed to impress upon your 
class that you will not tolerate inattention. For the 
next week or two make the inattentive pupils do most 
of the reciting. In gaining attention there is some- 
times as much occasion to use your authority as there 
is in governing the room. You have a good degree of 
will power. Make use of it in gaining and holding the 
attention of your classes." 

Attention, like memory, may be of two kinds, volun- 
tary and involuntary. Baldwin, however, in his Psy- 

cholos'V of the Art of Teachi?io^, does not admit 
attention. ^^ ^^^^ division, but insists that attention is 

always voluntary. Something startles me, 
and attracts my attention. My will has nothing to do 
with it, and involuntarily I look out of the window. I 
hear an unusual noise in the street. If, however, the 



1 77iagi7iatio7i, Atte7ition, l7iterest 28j 

matter proves to be of such importance that I continue 

to give it my attention, possibly going out to find the 

occasion of the disturbance, then my attention becomes 

voluntary; it is under the control of the will. 

It is not necessary to discuss this point further. 

How to cultivate the attention is of far 

, . , T^-i.t-r A i.' Cultivation 

greater importance. It is the toundation of atteittion 

upon which scholarship, study, and the 

daily recitations rest. Without it time is wasted, and 

the efforts of the best teacher fail. 

Let me remark here that attention and the control 
of the will after awhile take on the nature of a habit, 
and can be cultivated, as any other habit is cultivated, 
by a resolute persistence in doing. 

Cultivate attention by requiring attention. You do 
your pupils great harm when you allow a recitation to 
go on while the class is inattentive. Pause for a 
moment, and wait quietly until the pupils give you 
their attention. Sometimes a motion of the hand, a 
glance of the eye, a question given to the right 
scholar, will accomplish the desired result. 

The will power of the teacher, a ready and compre- 
hensive knowledge of the subject, an intense interest 
in the lesson, will prove of great assistance. Do not 
stop in the midst of the recitation to scold or disci- 
pline a pupil or to answer questions except such as are 
unavoidable. When the thought of the class is fixed 
upon the lesson, to break the continuity is to distract 
attention. Too many teachers are thoughtless in this 
respect. (See page 237.) 

Again, children will not give attention to those 
things toward which they are indifferent. You 
cannot command attention unless you can stimulate 
an interest in the child's mind, or awaken his curiosity, 



284 Co7n7non Sense Didactics 

which is only his desire to know. Read this quotation 
carefully: "Attention, the indispensable condition of 
r ,.rr. all mastery, follovv^s the lead of interest, and 

ence, akin- IS steadied and given purpose by it. Inter- 
drance. ^^^ jg aroused by a proper relating of the 
novel and the familiar. Voluntary attention sets the 
mind to the performance of a given piece of work; 
involuntary attention holds the mind to the work." 

It is perfectly right to say to a pupil, "You must 
give your attention to this lesson," but your com- 
mand will not accomplish anything unless you can 
convince him there is something there worth attend- 
ing to. 

Let me, however, add this thought. If the child is 
to be fitted for life, he must be so trained in the school 
that he can by force of will lend his attention to the 
work which must be done then and there, although it 
may not be at the time altogether to his liking. How 
often do we compel ourselves to attend to some matter 
in hand, although the heart is drawn in another direc- 
tion. 

By training and exercising the attention the business 
man renders it of the greatest service to himself, and 
he does not want a clerk about his store or his office 
who has not this habit. The place and time to form 
habits of attention are in the school and during child- 
hood. 

Attention is most easily fixed when interest is keen, 
but interest will grow when attention is fixed by 
the power of the will. This point is worth 
consideration. The stronger will of the 
teacher should be so exerted as to prevent the pupils 
from drifting into idle, indifferent habits of study. 
Everything should be avoided which tends to distract 



I ma gin ati 71, Attention, Interest 28 j 

the pupil's attention from his work, either while he is 
preparing or reciting his lesson. If you really expect 
to win the pupil's attention, you should be as much 
interested in the lesson as you expect him to be« 

Do not, however, look for too much. Observe the 
little child at his play. He changes continually from 
one game to another. He tires of the same playthings. 
One is the favorite to-day, another to-morrow. It is 
possible to require too much in the way of prolonged 
attention from older pupils. The interest, excited by 
strong motives, if prolonged may give rise to such 
tense attention as to produce physical weariness, or 
perhaps permanent injury to the brain. (See page 92.) 

In closing this chapter I wish to remind you of the 
intimate connection which exists between memory and 
attention. The art of memory is based, 
almost entirely, upon the art of paying at^tenUon^ 
attention. Here, also, is the secret of the 
art of study, which is only the power of concentra- 
tion, the ability sometimes natural, often acquired, to 
call in all wandering thought, and fix the efforts of 
the mind upon Ihe lesson to be learned. This power 
is a most valuable acquisition to the scholar or to the 
man of business. It is the secret of success in any 
calling, and the time to cultivate it is in childhood. 
Persisted in from day to day it at length becomes an 
enduring habit of the mind. 

The degree of attention and interest determines the 
permanence of the impressions which memory retains. 
Whatever is learned to-day is learned for all to-morrows. 
Horace Mann says: "No unskillful hand should ever 
play upon the harp when 

The Tunes Are Left Forever in the Strings." 



286 Com7no7i Sense Didactics 

Quotations Worth Reading 

imagination. 

The most trivial and unsuitable objects are sufficient to excite 
its action. The rude and unfinished toy is more acceptable to the 
child than the more costly and elaborate, because it leaves more 
room for the constructive power. It is all the better if the greater 
part of the work is left for this to complete and supply. The 
sports and plays of childhood are little romances, prompted and 
acted over for the simple exercise and delight of the imagination. 

—Noah Porter. 

But perhaps the greatest power of imagination over life comes 
from the creation by it of what are called ideals, not of art, but of 
character and conduct. Ideals are representations of that which 
is perfect, or which we esteem so. They are a setting before 
ourselves of lines of conduct such as belong to the higher and 
better parts of our nature. 

—Mark Hopkins. 

Imagination and fancy, or fantasy, are like recollection, free in 
the sense that they depend on the self. But they are freer than 
recollection, because they are not tethered to real events or 
things that belong to a past experience. They determine forms, 
shapes, situations and actions entirely ideal, and without reference 
to actual existences except in so far as the general laws of space 
and time which logically condition fancies as well as existences 

demand. 

— William T. Harris. 

It may take contact with but a little of evil to fan into a con- 
suming flame the imaginings of a child who might, but for that 
contact, have been made almost divine. In these recommenda- 
tions it is not forgotten that some one must face evil in order to 
put it down, but that person should be one whose character is 
established beyond question, and not a child. 

—A.T. Smith. 

Literature has a most marked effect in the developmeni of the 
imagination. It is this quality which makes the bad look so dan- 
gerous — even more dangerous than the evil companion. 

— Ruric N. Roark. 
A TTENTION. 

Mr. Fitch has a lecture on the art of securing attention, and 
he briefly passes these methods in review: the posture must be 
changed; places can be changed. Questions, after being 
answered singly, may occasionally be answered in concert. 
Elliptical questions may be asked, the pupil supplying the missing 
word. The teacher must pounce upon the most listless child and 
wake him up. The habit of prompt and ready response must be 
kept up. Recapitulations, illustrations, examples, novelty of 
order and ruptures of routine — all these are means for keeping the 
attention alive and contributing a little interest to a dull subject. 

— William James. 



Imagination, A ttc ntion, Inf ere st 28y 

Inattention is as necessary to mental activity as attention. 
Morbid attention to a particular subject shows a tendency to 
insanity; we often speak of people being "mad on music" or 
"mad on politics." A perfectly healthy mind has special inter- 
ests, so that it is not always possible for us not to attend to our 
hobby. 

^Selected. 

The pupil must learn to exclude and ignore the many things 

before him, and to concentrate all his powers of mind on the one 

chosen subject. ^ ^^ 

^ — William T. Harris. 

We must not suppose, however, that the value of attention is 

limited to intellectual pursuits ; it extends to the whole practical 

world as well. In fact it is no exaggeration to say that a man's 

power of attention often determines his success or failure in life, 

involving his ability to use effectively his powers, both of mind 

and body. 

^ —B. A. Hinsdale. 

INTEREST. 

If, then, you wish to insure the interest of your pupils there is 
only one way to do it, and that is to make certain that they have 
something in their minds to attend with when you begin to talk. 

— William James. 

What we must do in teaching if we expect to interest our pupils 
is to set them to do something that they are able to do in order 
that they may acquire the power to do what they can not do. 

— /. P. Gordy. 

The teacher's first duty is to lay hold of such of the pupil's old 
interests as can be made available. Attention is possible only on 
the tw^o conditions,. that the child shall have something to pay 
attention with and something to pay attention to. 

—B. A. Hinsdale. 

There is one person about whom every one feels an interest 
and is very keen to hear remarks about him— everyone takes an 
interest in himself. This gives the teacher a power of which he 
may make very great use. If he can study the boys as indi- 
viduals he will often be able to send a shaft right into the bull's- 
eve bv feathering it with a personal allusion, 
^ ^ ^ —R. H. Quick. 

Questions for Examination 

/. Define imagination. 

2. Distinguish between reproductive and constructive imag- 
ination. 
J. How may you aid the child in cultivating his imagination? 
4. How may imagination help the pupil in his reading lesson? 



288 Commo7i Se?ise Didactics 

J-. What does Dr. Hillis say of the imagination? 

6. Give the extract taken from the School and the School- 

7naster. 

7. Define the two kinds of attention. 

8. How may the teacher gain and retain the attention of the 

class? 
g. Discuss the relations between memory and interest. 
10. How does imagination differ from memory? 

Suggestions Worth Thinking About 

/. How should I train the child in whom memory is naturally 

defective? 
2. Who was Cyrus Peirce? 
J. Do I train my own memory daily? 
4. In connection with imagination what use can be made of the 

illustrations in the text-books? 
J-. Who is Newell D wight Hillis? 



CHAPTER XVI 

THE OLD vs. THE NEW 

Let There Be Light 

Go with the sun and the stars, and yet evermore in thy spirit 
Say to thyself: It is good, yet there is better than it: 
This I see is not all, and this that I do is but little; 
Nevertheless it is good, though there be better than it. 

—Arthur Hugh Clotigh. 

The new education of which we have heard so much in later 
years really began its work v/hen the great Teacher summoned 
the world to a life of service. 

—Samuel T. Dutton. 

The power to use tools, instruments and machinery lifts man 
above the brute creation. There is labor-saving machinery in 
thinking as well as in manual labor. 

— Nathan C. Schaeffer. 

Lay aside all affectation, you teachers ; be yourselves good and 
virtuous, so that your example may be deeply graven on your 
pupils' memory until such time as it finds lodgment in their heart, 

—Rousseau. 

EVERYTHING in this world exists either in the 
positive or comparative degree; there is no 
superlative. One thing is good, another is better; 
nothing is best. What we do to-day can 
be compared with what we did yesterday, T^''-^^'^^ ^^ ^}o 
but it cannot be used to measure what we 
hope to do to-morrow. 

We stand with a certain amount of work thrust into 
our hands. It is not to our credit that we do it better 
than some one else does his, nor is it to our discredit 
that some one else does his work better than we do 
ours. The pernicious habit of comparing ourselves 
19 28g 



2go Common Se?ise Didactics 

and our success with others is the cause of half the 
unhappiness the world knows. God allots the task, 
and he gives the penny a day to every laborer. But it 
is only a penny. He is a wise man who accepts it 
without grumbling. 

The servant in the parable was condemned for what 
he did 7iot do, not for what some one else did. 

The man who can conscientiously say, "I am doing 
the best I know how to do, let who will do better," 
can sleep in peace, nor fear to-morrow. While he who 
can say, "I am doing better to-day than I did yester- 
day; there is more thought and more skill in my work; 
there is more humanity and more of Christ in my 
spirit," hath achieved "a distinction which will live in 
heaven. " 

The only measure of greatness, then, is fidelity to 
duty. The progress of the world is traced not by let- 
tered stone, nor storied monument; but by the 
unmarked graves, the resting-places of heroic men and 
women, who died and left no name. 

The healing of the world 
Is in its nameless saints. Each separate star 
Seems nothing ; but a myriad scattered stars 
Break up the night and make it beautiful. 

Among those who read this book there are, without 
doubt, teachers of all grades. Some are charged with 
weighty responsibilities, and others — to themselves, at 
least — seem to fill small and obscure positions. Don't 
worry about that; let God decide what work you can 
do best. The college professor, the city superintend- 
ent, the instructor in the graded school, the teacher in 
the little schoolhouse upon the prairie, have more in 
common than they think they have. 

The walls in the stately building settle and yawn in 



The Old vs. The New 2gi 

unseemly cracks, not because the carver and engraver, 
the worker in fine brass, and the painter, failed to do 
good work; but because the bricks were spoiled in 
burning, or the mortar was untempered, or the trench 
in which the foundations were laid was not deep 
enough. The touch of an unskilled workman makes 
itself everywhere felt. We learn from each other. 
Nothing can be said to be the best possible. When 
there is nothing beyond in this world, then comes the 
millennium. 

In some things the city school is superior; but the 
well regulated country school has a freedom from con- 
ventionality — from red tape, from dead routine — and 
an approach to the personality of the child which the 
city teacher may study with great profit. 

I ask you here to consider certain principles, and 
apply them to the individual work which each one has 
in hand to-day. During the eighteenth cen- 
tury a few thinking men changed the tvpe Foujida- 

^ ^ , *=* ^ ^ t tons. 

of educational thought in the old world. 

Any attempt to transfer their ideas, unmodified by the 
conditions of Ame'rican life, to our own times, must 
of necessity prove a failure. Times and seasons re- 
cast all things. 

But the ideas in question are so full of material for 
thought, they come so near the life of true learning, 
they are so akin to nature, that our system of schools 
can only hope to approach perfection as teachers study 
the precepts and imitate the example of these men. 

I wish the fences about the schoolhouse were so high 
that the hobby-rider could never overleap them, and 
the door so narrow that in order to enter the building 
he m.ust leave his package outside. The purpose 
should be not to reject anything which experience has 



2g2 Coimno7i Sense Didactics 

taught us is of value in educating the child, nor to pull 
down for the pleasure that there is in rebuilding. The 
man of one idea who would smash jj/(9?/;' idol and Tnine^ 
and compel us to worship his, is a nuisance. 

In every step looking toward advancement there 
should be an effort to kindle a warm glow of thought; 
to rouse an irresistible impulse toward a nearer 
approach to humanity; to compel an uplifting of the 
whole being into a purer, holier atmosphere of unselfish 
love. This was Froebel's mission in the kindergarten. 

In this connection three names are prominent: 
Rousseau, Pestalozzi, and Froebel. 

Rousseau, who aspired to be the founder of the 
natural method of education, attempted to array nature 
yy against art. "Childhood," he says, "has 

reformers: its methods of seeing, perceiving, and 
Rousseau. thinking peculiar to itself." This is nature. 
He adds, "Nothing is more absurd than our being 
anxious to adopt our own method in its stead." 

As the author of the "new education," Rousseau 
defines it to be "The art of guiding without precept, 
and of doing everything by doing nothing." He sums 
up the object of his system when he says, "Natural 
education must fit a man for all human relations." 

We are not to infer, however, that this new education 
would leave a child free to grow up as directed by 
chance. On the contrary, it would carefully guard him 
against all adverse influences. All that which is arti- 
ficial is to be shunned, and that is artificial which 
weakens the body or degrades the intellect. The 
instructor must make himself a child, must study the 
child, must grow up with the child. He is not so much 
a teacher as a guide; not so much a governor as a 
playmate; but he is not to correct nature in anything, 



The Old vs. The New 2g3 

lest he destroy the personality of the pupil. When the 
teacher forgets that he was once a child, it is time for 
him to surrender his certificate. The man or woman 
who was never a child has no right in the teacher's 
place. 

To reach the age of discretion, possessed of a sound 
mind in a sound body; to be devoid of anger, malice, 
envy, hatred, and of all kindred vices; to 
know few things, but to know them well; %Z7chUd. 
to possess the power of acquiring knowl- 
edge, and a hungry desire to know all things, was the 
education Rousseau designed for his imaginary child. 
The child is divine; knowledge is his birthright. 
Nature will lead the child into the possession of his 
inheritance. 

Pestalozzi followed Rousseau. As simple as a child, 
as pure as a saint, as awkward as a clown, as firm as a 
martyr, unelated by success, enthusiastic pestalozzi 
even amid defeat, his character was the and his 
strangest mixture that ever bequeathed a 
name to posterity.^ The crudeness of his habits minis- 
tered to his strength, and the courage of an honest 
heart was seen in every thought. 

With Pestalozzi the family was supreme, and the 
mother was supreme in the family. He said: "Mater- 
nal love is the first agent in education." "The starting 
point of the child's education is the cradle; what is 
most demanded of the mother is a thinking love." 
There are some eternal landmarks which God has 
established, and this is one of them. As the child 
progressed the senses were to be carefully trained, 
vigorous growth was to be encouraged, but in no way 
to be forced. The activity of the teaching mind was 
to be an aid, but not to supplant self-activity on the 



^p^ Co in 711 71 Se7ise Didactics 

part of the child, which he considered the highest aim 
of education. 

As the apostle of the new education, Pestalozzi 
taught that, from the first dawning of consciousness, 
every incident in the child's life should be made to 
teach him some useful lesson, and to inculcate the 
habit of thinking upon what he sees, and of speaking 
after he has thought. 

If the teacher can get hold of the whole child he 
may hope to make a man of him. Training, whether 
intellectual, moral, or physical, must begin when 
growth begins. Many a holy man has been converted 
while yet in his cradle. 

He is the best teacher who enters most heartily into 
the everyday life of his pupils. What a depth of reve- 
lation there was in the question: "Did not our hearts 
burn within us as he talked?" It is written once in 
the life of every man: "Behold the sower went forth 
to sow." Were it not so the Lord of the harvest 
would have no need of laborers for there would be no 
harvest. 

Following Pestalozzi came Froebel, with his kinder- 
garten. Froebel was not an imitator, neither was he a 
philosopher. He was rather an inventor, 
Froebel and ^]^^ succeeded in reducing to system and 
practice the crude theories of his associ- 
ates and predecessors. He was endowed with the 
divine gift of thought. 

The fundamental idea with him was that the child's 
education should be founded upon his innate love of 
activity. With Froebel all occupations are plays, and 
all materials are gifts. He would attempt to meet the 
demands of the child's nature, both physical and 
mental. He would awaken new desires, but in exact 



TJie Old vs The New 2g^ 

ratio with the teacher's power to satisfy them. The 
plays must be carefully adjusted to the capacity of the 
child, that they may not retard those children capable 
of more rapid advancement, nor crowd in the least 
degree those with less active minds. The child should 
be instructed as though he were the only child in exist- 
ence, and yQt he must be continually reminded of the 
relations which he bears to all other children about 
him. He is the only one; he is one of many. 

In the true kindergarten the greatest attention was 
to be paid to moral training, to personal habits of 
order, cleanliness, and to the amenities of polite life. 
In truth, the founders of the iiatiiral method insisted 
upon training the child as a rational and immortal being. 

I have thus endeavored to state, fairly and con- 
cisely, some of the principles upon which the new 
education was based. Let us now see how it differs 
from the old. 

We have seen that the new education assumes that 
nature is always right, and therefore, always a safe 
guide. The old school asserts that nature 
must be assisted by art, that civilization is new e due a- 
itself an artificial state of society, and that t^on eom- 
the education which fits a child for it must 
be largely artificial. The teacher, as a superior being 
on a higher plane, must bring the child up to his level 
by a series of dead lifts. It recognizes the fact that 
education is a natural process, but it attempts by 
unnatural means to force it into certain grooves. 

In its modified form it admits that education is, and 
should be, a natural growth, but it also claims that this 
natural growth must be closely watched and carefully 
trained; that certain habits of thought and action must 
be thoroughly eradicated, and others induced to grow 



2g6 Common Sense Didactics 

in their places; that nature is helpless, to the extent 
that the child is born with certain inherited traits, the 
fruits of wrong training upon preceding generations; 
that he comes to the teacher's hands confirmed in 
wrong habits by home training. 

In short, the old school claims that all which is 
artificially wrong can be corrected only by that which 
is artificially right. In its radical form, the old educa- 
tion makes much of memory, but little of the per- 
ceptive powers. The child has certain knowledge of 
anything, because he has the word of his teacher, or 
the statement of his text-books. The teacher requires 
attention on the part of the pupil, and tries to enforce 
it. Failing in this, he resorts to continual corrections, 
and reproves often and sharply. 

The new education designs to secure attention 
through the skillful presentation of choice material 
suited to the child's mind. So far as art is an attempt 
to realize, in a particular case, some idea, the old edu- 
cation is an art. So far as science is developing an 
idea in a general sense, applicable to all cases, the 
new education approaches a science. 

The two schools differ still more in aesthetical and 
moral training. The old makes little of the beautiful. 
It does not seek to train the eye to see, nor the hand 
to form, nor the ear to hear; and where these powers 
exist, a little germ planted by nature with some good 
intent, it limits and hinders this development by the 
substitution of meaningles words. 

But in the new the pupil is taught to interpret the 
trees, the waters, the flowers of sum.mer, and the crys- 
tal forms of winter into a living though unwritten 
language. "To love all virtue for itself, all nature for 
its breathing evidence." 



TJie Old vs. The New 2gy 

In moral training, under the old education, wrong is 
always punished if detected; right seldom rewarded. 
Unconditional obedience is required as a means of 
escaping punishment. Love of self-approbation is 
appealed to, but self-respect is neglected. Conscience, 
love of truth, virtue, these are left to be developed by- 
chance. 

The pupil is constantly confronted by the stern 
words: "He who has a bad character must absolutely 
create for himself a better one." This is a terrible 
sentence to be passed upon any man. He must lift 
himself out of the mire; he must pull himself out of the 
"Slough of Despond." 

Under the new, the words of Pestalozzi are full of 
hope to both teacher and pupil. "Faith must be culti- 
vated by an act of believing, not by reasoning about 
faith. Love by an act of loving, not by fine words about 
love." "God is the nearest recourse of humanity." 

We cannot adopt all which these men advocated. 
We understand some things better than they did. We 
know the surroundings of our schools, and are not 
called to be imitators. An American system of schools 
must be in accordance with American needs. But the 
Pestalozzian spirit, through which education becomes 
nurture, is universal and of universal application. Not 
only is it necessary to care for the child's body, but to 
teach him to care for his own body; to teach him the 
laws of healthful being. 

The teacher is not alone to correct bad habits, but to 
correct them by inducing the formation of 'better ones. 
Comparatively few children need to be stimulated by 
artificial means; all need to be encouraged in every 
right effort. Few need positive punishment; all need 
restraint. 



2g8 Co junto 71 Sc7ise Didactics 

I do not say that we have pushed too far our require- 
ments for book knowledge in teachers. It does not 
harm the teacher to know a little something 

The ideal ^f books. A little knowledge is not so 
way. ^ 

very dangerous as some of us seem to 

think. But we have pushed our requirements too far 
in one direction. The land is full of one-sided teach- 
ers. A one-sided teacher never grows. 

We demand that they shall know what and how to 
teach. The next and more important step, is that they 
shall know why they do thus. It is not the art of the 
old school, it is not the science of the new. It is art 
joined with science, it is culture derived from books; 
the skill of a trained mind knit to the gentle yet irre- 
sistible power of nature, which characterizes the best 
teaching. Some one says that Jefferson, the great 
actor, has entered so entirely into Rip Van Winkle, 
that as he walks the streets he is not quite sure that 
"mine dog Schneider" is not at his heels. 

A change is coming over the whole aspect of the 
teacher's life. It is like the change which comes over 
the sky just before the dawn. Thringsays: "Teaching 
is not possible if an inspector is coming to count the 
bricks made to order." But teaching is not possible if 
the teacher has no higher ambition than to make bricks 
to order. Children must be treated as children. It is 
nothing ^against a boy that he hates books, and loves 
fun. If he is wideawake and honest, his fun is perhaps 
the best part of him. Get hold of him on that side, 
and you will have control of him; confine your efforts 
to the book side, and you drive him out of school, or 
render his school useless. 

I have great respect for the boy part of the boy. It 
is not always against him that he is attracted by remu- 



The Old vs. The Neiv 2gg 

nerative work. The schoolmaster complains because 
the boy leaves school to drive a delivery wagon. Yet 
some one must drive the wagon, or the schoolmaster 
will have no dinner. 

The point for the skillful teacher to reach is the 
personal consciousness, the Inner sense of the child, 
not holding up to him a lofty ideal of some 
one, a something outside of himself, but f^T^'f/i/. 
endeavoring to make him that ideal to him- 
self; to form within him that type of a perfect man 
which is the strength of manhood, the comfort of age, 
the surety of life everlasting. 

There are two ideals in the boy's mind: A manly 
man and a womanly woman. 

A pupil who dislikes his teacher may yet make good 
progress; but when he feels that his teacher is partial 
to others, or unjust in his treatment of him, the iron 
enters his soul and he works without heart or hope. 
Even the dullest pupil, when he finds that his work is 
appreciated, is encouraged to greater effort, and takes 
fresh heart from^ the approval of his teacher. A boy 
once said in my hearing, "I like the teacher well 
enough. He treats me all right, but he is not fair to 
some of the others. It makes me hot the way he 
makes fun of Jack Small. If I was in Jack's place I 
would kick." Jack Small was a poor boy with no one 
to stand up for him. The teacher was a coward. (See 

page 1 80.) 

The school is a democratic institution. The princi- 
ple of equality before the law should be exemplified 
here as nowhere else. The following extract, by 
Henry Ward Beecher, expresses fully the idea I wish 
to inculcate: 

"The real democratic American idea is, not that a 



joo Co mm 71 Sense Didactics 

man should be on the level with every other man, but 
that every man shall be what God made him without 
let or hindrance; that there shall be no prejudice 
against him if he is high and that no disgrace shall 
attach to him if he is low; that he shall have supreme 
possession of what he has and what he is; that he 
should have liberty to use his powers in any proper 
direction." 

We must first know the end which we hope to reach, 
the aim which we may rightfully have in mind, and 
then fix upon the method to be adopted. 
■IOCS. g^^ when we exalt the method above the 
end, failure is inevitable. Education consists of two 
things: obtaining knowledge and using knowledge. 
We must, in our schools, have less to do with percent- 
age and so-called results, and more with capacity, power 
to acquire, ability to retain, and skill to use. 

A system which makes the promotion of children 
from grade to grade, any part of school life, dependent 
upon a certain per cent as determined by written 
examinations, is faulty in its construction and injurious 
in its results. It is not only that the flushed cheeks, 
the excited eye, the trembling nerves, tell that the 
brain is being forced to do unwonted work, but the 
wrong aim held up before the child is a far greater evil. 

An honest effort on the part of the child is always to 
be commended, even though it appear to result in fail- 
ure. Dr. Edward Everett Hale says this of himself: 
"I came home at the end of the first month with a 
report which showed that I was ninth in a class of 
fifteen. That is about the average rank which I gener- 
ally had. I showed it to my mother because I had it. 
I thought she would not like it. To my great sur- 
prise and relief she said it was a good report. I said I 



The Old vs. The New 301 

thought she would be displeased because I was so low 
in the class. She said, That is no matter. Probably 
the other boys are brighter than you. God made them 
so, and you cannot help that.' " She was evidently a 
good mother and a wise woman. 

Parents and teachers make a mistake when they com- 
pare one child with another. The mother who said to 
her daughter, "Your teacher says that Jane has 
a higher rank in the class than you have; you must 
study harder," did not mean to be cruel, but she was.. 
She incited the daughter to unwonted effort through 
unworthy motives. This saying by Ruskin should be 
kept in mind: "It is the effort that deserves praise, not 
the success; nor is it a question for any student whether 
he is cleverer than others or duller, but whether he has 
done the best he coidd zvith the gifts he had.'' 

A lady applicant for a position once sent me two 
specimens of scholar's work, as an evidence of her abil- 
ity as a teacher. They were good specimens of their 
kind, but what did they show? It is difficult to say. Of 
her ability to control, of her judgment, of her power to 
awaken thought, 'of her good influence over her pupils, 
of that teaching which sets the seal of the teacher's 
personal character upon the scholar, literally nothing. 

What did they show regarding her pupils? That they 
were able to produce a neat, orderly paper, which I 
grant is an attainment worth having; but they told 
little of their everyday habits of study, of their moral 
culture, of their physical training, of their reverence 
for sacred things, — nothing of the growth of those 
powers which make the child sensitive to truth, the 
youth sensitive to honor, and the whole man sensitive 
alike to truth, honor, and duty. 

We must fix upon the product, and then adjust the 



J02 Common Sense Didactic s 

machinery to the desired end. To introduce a tem- 
porary motive which does not endure beyond the pres- 
ent is a terrible mistake. It is sowing the wind and 
forgetting the whirlwind which is sure to follow. The 
chain which binds together yesterday, to-day, and for- 
ever has never been broken. "Whatsoever ye sow, 
that shall ye also reap," is nature's law. When 
through any process the child comes to understand 
that eighty per cent is success, and seventy-nine per 
cent is failure, it would be better for him that he had 
never seen the inside of the schoolroom. 

It is sometimes asserted that the spirit of the latest 
phase of education is hostile to the use of text-books, 
especially in the hands of the teacher. We 
Use of text- ^eg^] to be careful that we are not misled 
by mere catch-words and popular phrases. 
It is a very excellent thing when a teacher knows how 
to use the text-book. It is as necessary for him to 
study it, to know what is in it, as for the pupil, in 
order to produce a perfect recitation. 

I have seen teachers who were really very little in 
advance of the text-book fill themselves so full of it, 
enter so thoroughly into the spirit of the author and of 
his illustrations, as to make the lesson fairly luminous; 
when it was finished it was bristling all over with 
points, every one of which impressed itself upon the 
mind of the child. And I have seen other teachers, 
who discarded the text-book as too old-fashioned for 
them, proceed in their own way to amplify and illus- 
trate and simplify and mix things up until every point 
was almost as clear when the recitation ended as when 
it commenced. (See page 193.) 

There is actually some danger that the teacher will 
know too much. Better draw water from one clear 



The Old vs. The New 303 

living spring, than from a hundred shallow ponds. 
The old-fashioned schoolmaster, who knew his arith- 
metic and grammar from one end to the other, had in 
his favor some strong points which are wanting in the 
more modern teacher, who knows — or thinks he knows 
— something of everything. 

I say, without hesitation, to every teacher who reads 
this, be sure you know just what is in the book your 
pupils are studying, and after that learn as much more 
as possible. Let us not be hasty; text-books have their 
uses. The need is, that we know them to use them and 
yet not be in bondage to them. The power of person- 
ality will not be increased by discarding them, nor 
decreased by employing them. 

Freedom in teaching sometimes means something 
very different from personality in teaching. The 
teacher must rise superior to the text-book; not in 
knowledge, but in spirit; not in the abundance of that 
which he knows, but in his ability so to present knowl- 
edge that whatever the child has acquired by diligent 
study may become the germ of inward growth, induc- 
ing thought and self-activity, awakening him to "the 
inner consciousness of his powers, which is the object 
of the education of nature." 

If you have read this closely, you have clearly seen 

that the difference between the old and the new is 

more in spirit than in matter or method. 

The education most prevalent in this coun- difference 

try for many years had chief reference to betzueen old 

. (X7td neiv 
brain training. There is a strong feeling 

that now the great question is: "How can we best fit 
the child for the duties of social life and of citizen- 
ship?" If we could reach him in the family, the ques- 
tion could be more easily solved. 



^04- Commo7L Se?ise Didactias 

We do not realize, in its full extent, that the end 
of education is outside and beyond the school. We 
must study the life which is about us, and into which 
the child will enter at his maturity, if we look forward 
to leading him up to a high ideal of noble living. 

If you would be convinced of the magnitude of this 
question, just at dark, after the hour of labor, go into 
the lanes and alleys of any city and see the crowds of 
children swarming from out their dirty, squalid homes, 
wallowing in the dirt, growing up in filth, ignorance, 
and sin. 

The great hope of the patriot, the philanthropist, the 
Christian is that many of these children are in our free 
schools. The spirit of the new education would incite 
us to teach these children not only the laws of personal 
health, but so much of sanitary science as pertains to 
cleanliness in all the surroundings of their homes; so 
much of political science as pertains to the mutual de- 
pendence existing between labor and capital; so much 
of patriotism as pertains to the blessings of a free, firm, 
enlightened government; so much of morals as pertains 
to questions of right and wrong; and so much of re- 
ligion as pertains to their immortality. (See page 128.) 

In dealing with children, conscience is the surest 
ally we can have. It is hers to unbar the window, take 
down the shutters, throw wide open the door, that the 
light of God's truth may have free access to the soul 
within. (See page 134.) 

The environments which surrounded the child 

seventy-five years ago were so different from those 

amid which he lives to-day, that it is diffi- 

Cha7igeden- ^^||. ^^ institute a comparison. One of the 

vironments. , ■ , , , 1 ^1 ^ r 

first lessons which he learned was that or 

responsibility. He had his chores to do, his task to 



The Old vs. The New J05 

perform independently of his school. As a member 
of the family he was under obligations to do some- 
thing for the comfort of others. Habits of order and 
industry, of self-denial and serviceableness, became 
second nature. 

I once knew a family in which there were three 
daughters. The two younger remained at home, and 
braided palm-leaf hats that the oldest sister might go 
to the academy for a year. Then the youngest and 
the eldest earned the money to send the second 
daughter; and then the two older did the same for the 
youngest. I have often questioned with myself 
whether the year's study at the academy was not 
intensified and strengthened by the fixedness of pur- 
pose and the self-denial which characterized the life of 
these New Hampshire girls while braiding straw in 
their father's house. 

There is an educational value in work, as well as in 
books and teachers. We need to remember that, 
when we load the child with so many studies that he 
has no time for any labor about the farm or in the 
house or the ofifice', we deprive him of a very essential 
part of his education. The school will yet see the 
necessity of strengthening rather than severing the 
ties which bind the life of the child to the real life of 
the community about him. 

I have not advocated the adoption of the new educa- 
tion in all its details. I believe the most we can do 
is to catch its spirit, study its principles, and build 
them, as elements of strength, into our American sys- 
tem. I commend them with the more earnestness to 
every teacher because there is not a social, moral, 
religious, or political question of the day, the solution 
of which will not be affected by the instruction given 



jo6 Cominon Sense Didactics 

in our public schools; so great are the interests com- 
mitted to our charge. Only let us study with care and 
thought all phases of our work. 

Let There Be Light. 



Quotations Worth Reading 
foundations. 

The prevention of crime is the duty of society. But society has 
no right to punish crime at one end if it does nothing to prevent it 
at the other end. Society's chief concern should be to remove 
causes from which crime springs. It is as much a duty to pre- 
vent crime as it is to punish crime. 

— Sarah B. Cooper. 

The child's restless observation instead of being ignored or 
checked should be diligently ministered to and made as accurate 
as possible. 

— Nathan C. Schaeffer. 

We teach him to read without implanting in his soul such love 
of the good in literature that he will choose the good and no other, 
and we have opened for him doors into evil paths as well as good, 
without power to withstand the temptations of the one and to 
steadily pursue the other. 

—Sarah L, Arnold. 
THREE REFORMERS. 

Comenius, Rousseau and Pestalozzi, to whom much that is 
excellent in our American schools to-day can be traced, were 
men who wrote and taught because they saw a great need, 
because their intense emotional natures were stirred to the depths 
at the sight of children growing up in ignorance or wasting the 
precious time of youth in empty verbalism. 

— Charles De Garmo. 

The most important part of education consists in making 
children feel their helplessness and weakness and their depend- 
ency, and in accustoming them to the severe yoke of necessity 
which nature imposes upon men ; and this in order that they may 
better understand how much is done for them, and that they may 
early learn in what position Providence has placed them, and 
may avoid endeavoring to escape from it ; and that they may feel 
all the varieties of human weakness. 

A child should no more obtain any favor by noisy begging than 
by tears or coaxing. 

— Rousseau. 

We do not divert men from error merely by contradicting their 
foolish words, but by dissolving out of them the spirit of their 
errors. 



The Old vs. The New jo/ 

It does not help one to see to describe to him the night and its 
dark colors and shadows. We can show what the night is only by 
lighting up, and what blindness is by covering the eyes. 

Just as little will one learn the right path to a place by being 
lead about through all the side streets where he might go astray. 

—Pestalozzi. 

The essence of education consists in this, that each department 
of human activity is developed in the individual; none of them 
isolately, but each in a harmonious relation to the others. 

Therefore the school and life should each be treated as a unity, 
so that in education the attention may be fixed on the future man, 
the father of a family, the citizen, the patriot. 

— Froebel. 

THE OLD AND THE NEW COMPARED. 

In the management of the school the teacher must count with 
the forces in the homes as well as those in the school ; he is in the 
community and must be of it ; he must be an organizer as well as 
an instructor; and last though not least, must abound in what is 
next to the most effective possession of all — good sense. Good 
character and good sense are the Alpha and Omega of the 
teacher's equipment. Other qualifications can be secured through 
proper effort or study, but these must be in the very nature. 

—Selected. 

John Stuart Mill said: "I rejoice in the decline of the old 
brutal and tyrannical system of teaching, which, however, did 
succeed in forming habits of application, but the new, as it seems 
to me, is training up a race of men who will be incapable of doing 
anything which is disagreeable to them." 

It scarcely ever entered the heads of our teachers to question 
us about the ideas hfdden in the great, long words and spacious 
sentences. It is possible that they did not always discover it 
themselves. "Speak up there and not read like a mouse in a 
cheese, and mind your stops" — such were the principal directions 
respecting the important art of elocution. 

— The District School as It Was. 

The common view of education restricts it too much to storing 
the memory with knowledge. The paramount duty of the student 
is to "get his lessons," and that of the teacher to see to it that he 
does get them. When the child first enters school a text-book is 
put into his hands; he is set to mastering words, learning defini- 
tions, committing rules and memorizing formulas. Recitations 
consist largely in reproducing the statements of the book in the 
language of the author. 

—Thomas J. Morgan. 
METHODS. 

In mathematics, therefore, as in grammar, instruction centers 

in the principles to be understood and applied. All variations in 



jo8 Co 711 in 71 Sense Didactic s 

method, whether inductive or deductive, are different modes of 
presenting these generaHzations. 

—Charles H. and Frank M. McMurry. 
TEXT-BOOKS. 

But nobody has ever proposed to throw aside books as instru- 
ments of teaching and discipline. Such a proposition would 
involve cutting the child off in great degree from the past. It 
would involve the renunciation of the major part of civilization 
and would be a long step toward barbarism. The book must be 
retained — to this, all agree. 

—B. A. Hinsdale. 

Books have two advantages. Chiefly they are tools for the 
mind. The foot's step is short, but the engine lengthens the 
stride and hastens it. The smith's blow is weak, but the trip- 
hammer multiplies the might of man's hand. Thus books are 
mental machines, enabling the mind of man to reap in many 
harvest fields and multiply the mental treasures. 

— Newell D wig hi Hillis. 

Questions for Examination 

/. What distinction can you make between the old education 

and the new? 

2. What were some of Rousseau's ideas? 

J. What were some of Pestalozzi's ideas? 

4. What can you say of Froebel? 

J-. How do the two schools differ in moral training? 

6. In what respect is the country school the better? 

7. The relation of the teacher to the text-book. 

8. What is the great question in educating the child? 

9. What do you understand by the expression "A Hobby 

Rider"? 
10. What' is said of the system which makes the promotion of 
pupils depend upon a certain per cent obtained by 
written examinations? 

Suggestions Worth Thinking About 

7. What is the true kindergarten idea? 

2. In what respect should the teacher become a child? 

J. Is the maxim "From the known to the unknown" always 

correct? 
4. State some of the advantages and some of the disadvantages 

of the teacher's vocation. 
J-. Why is it incorrect to say, "First form the mind, then 
furnish it"? 



CHAPTER XVII 

BOOKS AND THEIR USES 

The Grubbing-Hoe and the Axe 

How can this flood of pernicious reading be stayed? It must be 
done, if done at all, in the expressive language of Dr. Chalmers — 
"by the expulsive power of a new affection." A purer current of 
thought at the fountain can alone wash the channels clean. For 
this purpose I know of no plan as yet conceived by philanthropy, 
which promises to be so comprehensive and efficacious as the 
establishment of good libraries in all our school districts, open 
respectively to all the children in the state, and within half an 
hour's walk of any spot upon its surface. 

—Horace Matin. 

Yet are we so made that each man will think of some authors 
as if they had served him better than others, the truth being that 
these are the authors with whom he is most in sympathy ; they 
are the chosen friends of his soul. 

— William T. Harris. 

No matter how poor I am, no matter though the prosperous of 
my own time will not enter my obscure dwelling — if the sacred 
virtues will enter and take up their abode under my roof; if 
Milton will sing of Paradise, and Shakespeare open to me the 
worlds of imaginatien and the workings of the human heart ; if 
Franklin will enrich me with his practical wisdom — I shall not 
pine for want of intellectual companionship, and I may become a 
cultivated man, though excluded from what is called the best 
society in the place where I live. 

— William Ellery Channing. 

THERE is after all much rough land to be cleared. 
Trees are to be felled, stumps to be uprooted, 
rocks to be displaced, before the mowing machine or 
the reaper can be called upon to gather the y,, 
harvest. The axe and the grubbing-hoe teacher's 
must be wielded by strong arms, not for one tools. 
season, but for many, before all traces of the primitive 
wilderness disappear. 

309 



jio Common Sense Didactics 

It is dig and burn and plow and work, day in and 
day out, which is the portion of the pioneer — and pio- 
neers, in one sense, we all are. Life is very new to us. 
"We never traveled this road before; we never shall 
come this way again." If we stop to consider our 
past lives, to look over the ground along which we 
have come to our present work, we are astonished to 
find how often we have had occasion to use the rough 
tools of field life in order to clear our pathway and 
make a safe place for our footsteps. 

But no one can work without tools, nor can he work 
to any advantage with them until he becomes skillful 
in their use. The tools at your disposal wherewith to 
do your work are books, and the art of using them to 
the best advantage comes, as skill always comes, 
through thought and practice. 

Emerson says that books are only to inspire. Knowl- 
edge is of secondary importance. "That alone minis- 
B k • th ' ^^^^ ^^ ^^^ growth of the race which, com- 
use and ing from the heart of one, finds lodgment 
abuse. ^^^ j-£g j^^ ^j^^ heart of another. Without 

books not only would schools, colleges, and universi- 
ties disintegrate and disappear, but everything which 
we call culture would vanish, and society would lapse 
at once into barbarism." 

Emerson is right. The inspiration which makes life 
worth living is drawn from the printed page. To place 
a book in the hands of a child, after he has been taught 
to read it, is an act of the greatest moment. We give 
him the key and teach him to unlock the door which 
opens into all the activities of life. We recognize that, 
in the fullness cf his creation, he ranks but little lower 
than the angels of God. The child who in his youth 
is led to open his heart to the inspiration of books. 



Books a7id Their Uses jir 

anchors his life to the teachings of the great and good 
of all ages. (See page 70.) 

We have fallen upon an age of books, dealing with 
every conceivable subject, and with every possible 
motive. Good, evil, and indifferent, like Jeremiah's 
figs, the good very good, and the poor exceeding poor, 
they are scattered broadcast as the sower scatters the 
wheat. 

It is true that evil is embalmed in books; that the 
meanest vices of men speak from the printed page. 
It is equally true, however, that books are the open 
doors through which the poorest and the humblest 
enter into the inheritance provided for us by the impe- 
rial intellects of the world. An old writer says: 
"Without books God is silent, justice dormant, natural 
science at a stand, philosophy lame, letters dumb, and 
all things involved in Cimmerian darkness." 

Likewise we have fallen upon an age of investiga- 
tion. Men are unearthing the buried trophies of old 

nations, and are striving to read the records ^, , 

' *=• The age of 

of the ages before the flood. The explorer mvestiga- 
is visiting the utmost corners of the earth. ^^^^• 
Every decade sees new avenues of trade opened with 
opulent cities. The schoolboy of to-day, who becomes 
acquainted with the world's great channels of com- 
merce, knows the geography of vast continents which, 
on the atlas that his father studied, were marked as 
"unknown regions." 

The last half century has been especially prolific in 
great names, and history can no longer be taught apart 
from biography. In making history the nations of the 
earth change not only boundaries of empires, but the 
habits and customs of whole peoples. 

Once science delighted in a few chosen worshipers. 



^12 Co?n?no7i Sense Didactics 

Cuvier and Humboldt, Agassiz and Morse, were high 
priests in the secret places of her sanctuary. Now she 
throws wide open the gates of her temples, and the 
great refrain of her praise is full of the voices of the 
common people. The mechanic or the laborer has 
more avenues of scientific investigation opened to him 
through books and journals than were known to the 
professed scientists fifty years ago. 

To impart useful knowledge and to inform the child 
of the sources of knowledge, are two ends to be kept 
in mind by the teacher. In both respects the text- 
book alone is insufficient. In order to bring the text- 
book within reach of the parent's means most authors 
have reduced it to a mere epitome; a compendium, 
embracing only certain facts, or general truths. 

Intelligent teaching is not content with this. Geog- 
raphy and biography both must be studied in connec- 
tion with history. Travels, the lives of eminent 
explorers, the commercial value of a country must be 
connected with geography. With physical geography 
the child studies the contour of the continent, the sup- 
plies of fuel, of building material, the mineral resources, 
and the products which constitute the wealth of agri- 
cultural states. I have indicated but a few of the many 
lines which can be successfully followed out by the 
pupil, aided and directed by the teacher. It is impos- 
sible for either to do this without books of reference. 
(See page 72.) 

We may with profit devote a little space to consider- 
ing the best methods of making the school library 
. useful, and also to the character of the 

^^•^' books which should be found upon the 
shelves. Then we will talk of the reading best adapted 
to improve the teacher. 



Books a?id TJi eir Uses jij 

We cannot overestimate the influence of books upon 
the child's mind. Goldsmith's Vicar of Wakefield g^^^Q 
tone to the intellectual development of Goethe. 
Irving, when a boy, read with eagerness Robi?isofi 
Crusoe, and afterward Chaucer and Spenser. William 
Wirt read in the library of a Presbyterian minister with 
whom he studied, and Whittier read Shakespeare by 
stealth, when at work in the fields of his father's farm. 
Dr. Livingstone, as a boy of ten, worked in a cotton 
factory; yet he read and studied, not, only at night, 
but during the hours of labor. Dr. Adam Clarke, a 
celebrated divine and scholar, was a dunce at school; 
but in after life he was wont to attribute his literary 
taste to reading Jack the Giaiit- Killer y Arabian Nights, 
Sir Fra?icis Drake, The Pilgrim! s Progress, and similar 
works. 

It is one aim of the school to develop right-minded- 
ness in the pupils. That it fails to do so is a most seri- 
ous charge. The enemies of the public p- jf ■ ^ 
school system regard this as the vulnerable edtiess to be 
point, and are massing their forces against ^^"'^^^ <^i' 
it. It does not avail anything that these charges are 
in a measure untrue. The main charge, that we fail to 
make our teachings reach out into the homes of the 
pupils, is true. The mental growth of the child at 
school should not be separated from his mental growth 
at home. When they are in the same line the greatest 
progress is made; when they are in opposing, or 
diverging lines, one or the other must eventually pre- 
dominate and become the character of the man. 

The school library promises to furnish the missing 
link between the school and the home. The book, in 
the hands of the child, carries on the work of the 
school in a more attractive form, or silently repeats 



JI4 Common Se?ise Didactics 

the lessons of virtue and morality which he hears from 

the lips of the living teacher. 

It is well to dwell for a moment upon this point, for 

the idea is gaining ground very rapidly that the library 

is a necessary adjunct to the school. In 

The library ^he hands of an intelligent, cultivated 
in the ho7ne. , , , ., , » ' 

teacher the library becomes a most useiul 

auxiliary in reachmg the people in their homes. 
Without it, school extension is wellnigh impossible. 
The boy who is interested in his reading, and talks 
about it at home and in school, is not generally a diffi- 
cult boy to manage. Those young people in the com- 
munity who come back occasionally to the schoolhouse 
for a book from the library form a bond of sympathy 
between the school and the public, which goes far 
toward establishing and maintaining mutual confi- 
dence and respect. Encourage this custom. 

Probably not thirty per cent of the children in our 
schools advance beyond the elementary branches, yet 
they are to vote, to hold office, and to enjoy the rights 
and privileges of citizenship. Their toil will be light- 
ened, their lives made brighter, the home atmosphere 
rendered purer and more wholesome by teaching them 
as a part of their school education, to consult the 
printed page along lines of which literature, science, 
history, or art are the chief. 

This matter of libraries, the choice of books, how to 
read them, how to induce pupils and people to read 
them, deserves much more attention than it receives 
from teachers. 

In our normal schools, and in our institutes and asso- 
ciations, we dwell too exclusively upon the technical 
side of the subject as presented by the text-book, or as 
elucidated in some favorite method. "How shall I 



Books a?id Their Uses j/5 

best teach reading, writing, arithmetic?" are important 
questions; but far greater is the question: "How shall 
I reach the pupil in his innermost consciousness, so 
that he will continually grow, not alone in knowledge 
but in wisdom?" 

That he should be able to earn an honest living and 
support those dependent upon him, is a worthy aim. 
To this end honesty, prudence, economy, thrift, all 
should be inculcated in his daily lessons. Yet it is 
much more important so to shape and mould his educa- 
tion at school and at home that it may influence his 
entire conduct toward his neighbor and the world, 
and that, when dying, he may feel that his life has 
added a unit to the sum total of human happiness. 

The books in a library should tend to promote moral 
and intellectual growth. Books cannot be read with- 
out exerting some influence. They elevate j.^^ ^^n_ 
or degrade; they strengthen or weaken; they ence of 
add to, or subtract from, mental force. books. 
One man reaps tares, and another gathers golden 
grain, in the sarnie field, because of the seed sown 
somewhere in his early life. Books are but tools in 
the artist's hands. 

At times I think that we are sculptors more skillful 
than any in the studios of Florence or Rome; that we 
are painters in a higher sense than any of the masters 
of the old world. If sometimes our clumsy touch 
seems to mar the beautiful figure we would make, if 
now and then the faces we would paint seem to grow 
dim and fade from the canvas, it is only because our 
mortal senses are too dull and gross to fashion the 
form, or to divine the colors, which only the clearer 
light of eternity can bring into full relief. 

Sancho Panza said: "Blessings on him that first 



j/^ Connnon Se?ise Didactics 

invented sleep"; rather, blessed be he who first invented 
books; through them "the broken sounds of life be- 
come a song and life itself a long sweet melody." 

There are two classes of pupils in your school who 

will need special attention — those who are no: fond of 

reading anything, and those who r^ id every- 

^^^ks thing. The first class must' be ahured into 

paths of reading, while the second class 

needs cultivation and direction, and sometimes restraint. 

When a pupil does not care to take books from the 
library, or stops drawing them, do not urge the matter. 
Such a pupil may be given some entertaining volume, 
to read during school hours, selected from the books 
on your table. Do not tell him that yow expect to 
examine him on its contents; that will kill your pur- 
pose. The object is to induce, if possible, a taste for 
reading. This is often the first step toward leading a 
child to read at home. 

Do not be too particular about the real worth of the 
book, provided it is not low, and teaches no bad lessons. 
It should he entertaining, plentifully illustrated, and 
with an attractive binding. If he desires to carry it 
home, that is a good omen; allow him to take it, even 
though you run the risk of its being soiled. Keep 
such books well covered and protected, but books are 
for use, not show. I would not insist upon his taking 
another book at once, but let him look over several and 
read a little in each until he is interested in one of them. 

In the case in which the pupil reads too much, 

restrict him to one book a week and require a carefully 

prepared account, either verbal or written, 

V^lf^l^^^^^ of its contents. Set apart a certain time 

each week to talk zvith the children, not 

at them, about books and authors, and let the pupils 



Books and Their Uses jiy 

have one-half the time to express themselves; con- 
nect the reading of such children with their school 
work, in part at least. It is not wise to do so entirely, 
lest, when lessons stop, the reading stops also. 

During this half hour the teacher has frequent oppor- 
tunity to recommend this or that book to his pupils; 
to tell them that a certain author has written another 
book which is as good as the one they have been talk- 
ing about; or to direct them where to look for an inci- 
dent, a story, or a poem. This system gives these 
advantages: (a) It enables the teacher to direct and con- 
trol the pupil's home reading, without seeming to inter- 
fere with his right of choice; (b) it cultivates language 
and expression in the most practical way; (c) it famil- 
iarizes pupils with authors; and- (d) it induces pupils 
to form habits of reading with care and attention. 

Perhaps you have no library at your disposal. That 
is unfortunate, but where there is a will there is a 
way. Question pupils as to their reading. 
Encourage them to bring their reading to 
school, and do not be too much horrified if you find 
that the dime novel has its attractions. A prominent 
school man says that when eight years old he read 
Sixtee?i String Jack, and kindred books, and even now 
is not ashamed of it. He would not approve of that 
kind of reading for his own son, but would provide 
something more suitable. 

What he really meant was, that he w^as at just that 
age when he must have something to satisfy an unusu- 
ally active mind, and he took such books because he had 
nothing else at hand. The active boy must have some 
adventures in the book he loves to read. The wide- 
awake teacher will furnish, from history and biogra- 
phy, exactly such material as is best calculated to 



^i8 Common Se?ise Didactics 

charm the boy the more because he knows it is real. 
The stories which our grandmothers told us of pioneer 
life attracted us because we knew they were true. The 
little girl expressed it in childish language when she 
crawled up into her father's lap and said, "Tell me a 
really story, papa." 

In a certain room the teacher burned three dime 
novels in one half day. The pest disappeared as by 
magic, and we congratulated ourselves upon 
The dime our easy victory over sin, until we discov- 
ered that the boys still brought their dime 
novels to school — and hid them under the sidewalk. 
On their way home at night they exchanged with each 
other, and laughed at their teacher. They had estab- 
lished a kind of a clearing house for dime novels. 

Under similar circumstances, to-day, I would act 
differently. I would encourage the boys to bring their 
reading to school, as a friend talk with them about it, 
offer them a substitute, and endeavor to lift them into 
a desire for something higher and better. You must 
get the boy's confidence, which you do not get when 
you destroy the book in which he has the right of 
ownership. I have seen revenge, anger, and malice 
flash out of the boy's eyes at the destruction of his 
rubber gun or of his dime novel by the teacher. Before 
he reached home he had another gun, or a worse book. 
The poor birds paid the penalty, or he himself suffered 
from the book. The right of ownership is just as 
sacred to the boy as to the man. 

Possibly you teach in a school in which your entire 
time is taken up in hearing lessons, and the entire time 
of the pupil at home and in school is taken up in study- 
ing or reciting lessons. All I have to say in such a 
case is: "Reform Is necessary." In his early boy- 



Books and Their Uses jig 

hood, Horace Greeley was a reader of newspapers, and 
was so thoroughly posted in current events that he was 
cited as authority in political discussions. Frequently a 
disputed question in history or politics was settled by 
reference to him. "We'll leave it to Horace," and his 
word decided it. If we ever get over this age of cram, 
of measuring off learning by the page, as the merchant 
measures off calico by the yard, more time will be 
given the pupils to read and to digest what they read. 

In selecting books for library use, the book which 
contains low slang phrases should be dis- ^^/^^^^-^^^ 
carded; so should one which teaches by books/or the 
expression, or inference, any degree of ^^^^^^y- 
irreverence for sacred things. 

Do not place on the library shelf a book which 
teaches that it is smart to thwart the wishes of parents 
or teachers. Peck's Bad Boy, outrageously disgusting 
in its incidents, and bad in its tendency, differs from 
some others only in that its teachings are stripped of 
all disguises, and the stories are told in plain, bold 
English. 

We ought, also,'to throw out all books that tend to 
familiarize the child with the haunts of vice, or the 
ways of villains, in our large cities. Vice will force 
itself into the presence of the child soon enough, with- 
out any help from books. Pope's second thought was 
best when he wrote: 

Vice is a monster of so frightful mien 
As, to be hated, needs but to be seen ; 
Yet seen too oft, familiar with her face, 
We first endure, then pity, then embrace. 

Some one writes that we should avoid rubbish in a 
school library. It is very true; but children's reading 
should be such as not to cultivate a taste for rubbish. 



J20 Common Sense Didactics 

There has been a great change in the character of 
books designed for children, since Maria Edgeworth 
wrote Harry and Lucy and Popular Tales, 
^ooif'''' ^"^ ^^^^ Russell Mitford wrote Our Village. 
The wells which the servants of our fathers 
dug in their days, the Philistines have stopped up and 
filled with earth. 

While the shelves of the bookstores fairly groan with 
the weight of books prepared expressly for children, it 
is possible that children are receiving an injury from the 
character of some of the books which they read. The 
book which conveys information, increases the power 
of expression, induces thought, and makes a lasting 
impression, is a good book for the child. He grows 
strong, manly, and independent through reading it. 

On the other hand, a book from which all life and 
vitality has been extracted; which, with a view of 
bringing it down to the level of the child's mind, has 
been diluted until it has lost the vigor of thought and 
clearness of expression which characterize the author, 
is not a good book for children. The intent is to make 
it even more interesting and attractive than it was as it 
came from the author's hands, but it has been robbed 
of its power of inducing thought, and is no longer to 
be classed among books suitable for the district library. 
Robi?iso?i Crusoe in words of one syllable is not the same 
Robinson Crusoe which De Foe wrote; and Little Nell 
of Dickens' creation is best portrayed in Dickens' own 
words. 

Julian Hawthorne says that books for children should 
be such as you like to read because they interest you. 
The little girl came to her teacher with the request to 
let her keep her library book another week. "First 
father read it, then mother, and now sister is reading 



Books and TJi cir Us e s J2i 

it. I guess I can have it next week." The child 

enjoyed the book all the more because others of the 

family liked to read it. 

The school library must be picked out with certain 

ends in view. It must contain on its shelves, not alone 

history, poetry, fiction, but also books __ 

I'll ^u • J i. • • ^u -J 4. IV hat ike 

which bear upon the mdustnes in the midst school Hbra- 

of which the school is located. A library ry should 

. , , r r .1 1 • 1 • ^ contai7i. 

suitable for farmer s boys and girls is not 

the best for children whose parents work in mines or 

factories. 

If nature study is to be permanently installed in its 
appropriate place, it must not be allowed to degener- 
ate into meaningless talk, lest the same fate overtake 
it which has fallen upon the object teaching of twenty 
years ago. There is scarcely a trace of object teaching 
left to-day, and, unless we are careful, in twenty years 
nature study will be classed with the lost fads. 

Do not misunderstand me as opposing nature study. 
Only, nature study must call for the exercise of 
research and application on the part of the pupils as 
well as the teacher.' The library must furnish books to 
be read by the teacher and pupils in connection with 
these subjects which I have mentioned as of impor- 
tance to the school and to the community about it. 
(See page 70.) 

Without preparation and training in methods, 
teachers can no more instruct intelligently in nature 
study than they can in language or numbers. The 
object of the lesson is not alone to inform, but to stim- 
ulate and to create a desire to know more. This de- 
sire, awakened by an enthusiastic teacher, dies out 
unless the library supplies something to nourish and 
strengthen it. 



J22 Co7nmo?i Sense Didactic s 

I gravely fear that the books usually selected for the 
library are not of the character here indicated. They 
do not furnish the sustenance needed for a healthy 
growth of mindo 

I desire not to criticize too severely. The suggestion 
that much greater care should be taken in selecting 
books, that many should be rejected because the only 
claim they have is their ability to amuse, and their 
places supplied with those of a higher grade, is perhaps 
all that there is time to offer in this chapter. The 
library should be selected with a definite purpose in 
view. The old order of things must soon pass away, 
and in the new curriculum there will be use for books 
bearing upon every subject connected with social life 
in the country or city. 

The strength of the country school should be in the 
library. Not in the heterogeneous mass of books, 
bearing upon everything in general and 
the couZry nothing in particular, but in a collection 
school carefully made up and chosen, having in 

^ ^^^y- ^jg^ ^j^g highest possible usefulness to 

pupils and people. 

Let me briefly recapitulate. The library, in order to 
Se of the greatest service to the community tributary 
to it, should contain: 

First, books which treat of agriculture, or of the 
industry most prominent in that region because it fur- 
nishes the means of living to the inhabitants. They 
should pertain especially to whatever is the center of 
interest to that people. 

Second, those which treat of animal life: the birds 
most pleasing as songsters, and those most useful in 
destroying injurious insects and worms; the care of 
bees; the habits of ants and wasps; the care of domes- 



Books and Their Uses J2j 

ticated animals, and the profit in raising them. Above 
all things children should read books which have a 
humane side as regards the life which is about them. 

Third, horticultural books, which treat of fruit 
trees, of grafting and pruning, of vineyards, of small 
fruits which every family can raise with slight expense, 
but which add to the comfort of the table and swell the 
purse from which the housewife purchases the many 
little things needed in her family. 

Fourth, books which treat of floriculture. The real 
poetry of life is the beauty of the rose, the wild flowers 
on the prairie or in the woods. Window gardening 
and the care of lawns and shrubbery, with a view of 
beautifying the laborer's home should be included. 
The aesthetic side of the child's nature will always 
respond to the influence of chaste, pure, beautiful sur- 
roundings. 

Fifth, on the shelves should be books treating of 
arbor culture. The child should be interested in trees; 
how to plant and transplant them. Which trees are 
most useful for timber, for fruit, for shade, for beauty, 
and which are of the most rapid growth, may be bene- 
ficial subjects for research and discussion. 

Sixth, on another shelf should be found books that 
are to be read in connection with geography, a subject 
which cannot be rationally taught without reference to 
mineralogy, meteorology, and geology. There should 
also be an abundance of historical works and books of 
travel. These latter should be plentifully illustrated. 
We do not appreciate how much a child can get out of 
a picture in the books he reads. Elementary books 
along these lines, and at the disposal of the pupil and 
the teacher, add to the interest of the school and the 
success of the teacher's work. 



J24 Common Se?ise Didactics 

Seventh, there also should be a miscellaneous col- 
lection suitable for reading at the fireside, or in the 
family circle. Not every new book that is published 
should find lodgment in the school library. Only 
those should be given a place which are pure in style 
and elevating in sentiment. Dickens and Hawthorne, 
Cooper and Prescott, Tennyson and Longfellow ever 
must hold the first place as choice English classics. 
The dictionary and a variety of reference books should 
never be omitted. We make a mistake when we limit 
the usefulness of the library to the pupils in attendance 
at the school. There must be available on its shelves 
books for home reading for the family. History and 
biography, travels and science, art, poetry, and fiction 
all are needed to enlarge the horizon of the citizen's 
knowledge and to make him "a citizen of the world." 
The farmer's institute, the lyceum, the debating club, 
the mother's club should be stronger and more effective 
because of the inspiration drawn from the books in the 
school library. The questions which arise in parlia- 
mentary law, in civil government, in the state and 
national constitutions, should be answered by reference 
to the best authorities. (See page 67.) 

The library should be open to the young people who 
have left school, but reside in the neighborhood. The 
power and usefulness and happiness of the 
ofuseto^^'^ teacher will be increased, if from the regis- 
all yoimg ter he will learn their names, and then take 
P^^P ^' pains to make their acquaintance and enlist 

their sympathy in the support of the library and the 
school. "Any one who is a pupil of this school can 
use these books," is too narrow a regulation. "Any 
one is welcome to this library who is a resident of 
the district and will give assurance that the books will 



Books and Their Uses J2^ 

be carefully read and promptly returned," would be 
far better. 

In a certain kindergarten room in Ohio, the follow- 
ing sentence is posted up where no one who enters the 
front door can fail to see it: "The object of this house 
is to provide a center for the social, mental, and moral 
life of the people; to educate the children, to encour- 
age the parents, and to assist the workers, that life may 
be brighter and happier for all." Change the word 
house to library, and you have exactly my idea of the 
purpose of a school library. 

There is space for a short discussion of our third 
topic — the reading most beneficial to the teacher. 

As a general rule the American people read every- 
thing. There are books, papers, magazines, in nearly 
every home. The doors of countless libra- j., 
ries are open to children and adults, so that teacher's 
no one can say, 'T can get nothing to reading. 
read." Most people read without much discrimina- 
tion. An old poet remarked: 

Most readers, like good-natured cows. 
Keep browsing and forever browse ; — 
If a fair flower comes in their way, 
They take it, too, nor ask, "What, pray?" 
Like other fodder it is food, 
And for the stomach quite as good. 

R. H. Quick says: "Reading some books is like 
going down hill — you can hardly stop. Reading others 
is like going up hill, and the ascent sometimes becomes 
so very steep that further progress becomes impossible. 
I don't often read the down-hill books, which consist 
mostly of good fiction. It would, perhaps, be better 
for me if I did, for, in consequence of always going up 
hill, I get accustomed to very slow action. A run down 



J2^ Co mm 71 Sense Didactic s 

hill would raise my spirits, and I dare say prove no 
loss of time in the end." 

In this Quick recommends two kinds of reading: 
that which requires thought and study, which is like 
going up hill, and that which consists mostly of good 
fiction, which is easily read and which is like going 
down hill. The first is mainly professional reading. 
It is a pity that we include in the term professional 
only those books which treat of pedagogy, psychology, 
and methods. There are other lines pertaining to 
literature, history, science, and general information, 
which are professional in the highest sense. In fact, 
any reading which gives the teacher additional power 
as an instructor, widens his range of information, and 
gives a clearer insight into the pupils' needs and 
mental powers, is to be encouraged. 

This uphill reading, as Quick terms it, requires con- 
stant, persistent thought. With pencil in hand, the 
reader scans the page, stops here and there to mark and 
re-read a striking passage; perhaps he fails to gather 
just the author's ideas or thoughts until he has time to 
weigh the words and study the construction, but he does 
not consider the reading finished until he has made the 
author's thought his own. It is slow work, at times, 
but it makes a student of the reader. (See page 98.) 

A book read in this way will bear re-reading again 
and yet again, and every reading will bring new 
thoughts to the surface. Such a book becomes in time 
an old friend, staunch and true, to hold converse with 
whom is a perpetual delight. Have a quiet room; fix, 
as far as possible, upon a certain allotted time each 
day; give your entire attention to your book, and you 
will be surprised at the results, even though you allot 
to it but thirty minutes at a sitting. 



Books aiid Their Uses J2y 

The question is sometimes raised, whether it is not a 
waste of time to read novels. When I was a boy my 
brother made me a bow of hickory, and y^^^^,)^^^^. 
showed me how to use it. After a time he tion by the 
left it in my hands, with this injunction: i'^'-^'^^^'''- 
"Be sure and loosen the string when the bow is not in 
use. You will ruin it if you keep it strung all the 
time." The teacher who leads a strenuous life at home 
and at school, with little or no relaxation, loses his 
elasticity of mind and soon ceases to do good work. 
It is the dull, dead monotony, the ceaseless grind, that 
brings on prostration and eventually drives the teacher 
out of the schoolroom. (See page 201.) 

A teacher who leaves his schoolroom Friday, wearied 
with the week's work, and, unrested, returns to it Mon- 
day, may find relief if he has on hand some reading 
which he enjoys. Some story of the day, some tale 
by an old author, anything to take his mind off his 
school and school duties, will help him rest. 

My advice is that you have two lines of reading, the 
one of which you follow carefully and thoughtfully 
the other you may read for relaxation and amusement. 
They are equally necessary to your success. 

You should own some of the books which give you 
the most delight. One or two good books purchased 
every year will strengthen your love of jj^^ teacher 
reading. There is a pride of ownership in should own 
a book, which makes it a part of your ^^^^•'• 
family, so to speak— a part in which you never lose 
interest. There are a few suggestions to which I wish 
to call your attention. In every case choose books 
that are a well of pure, undefiled English. Of the last 
century, Dickens, Hawthorne, Thring, Scott, Cooper, 
Tennyson, Thackeray are among the best examples. 



J28 Co mm 71 Sense Didactics 

Of living authors there is a great multitude, which no 
man can number. Few of them will survive through 
the ages. For the present you must be guided by 
your taste. 

Again, do not read books which are too far above 
your comprehension. I know we sometimes take pride 
in saying we have read them, but they are not written 
for us, and we get no benefit from our attempt to under- 
stand them. And don't read everything that some 
friend recommends to you as good. "What is one 
man's meat is another man's poison." Some books 
are to be read with the understanding; some with the 
heart. 

Every teacher should include the Bible among the 
books with which she should be acquainted. I say 

nothing of it here as a religious book, but 
Reading simply as a book of whose literature no 

teacher can afford to be ignorant. Neither 
do I say anything of its use in the schoolroom. In 
that you must be guided by the laws of the state, the 
rules of the Board, and by your own judgment of what 
is best. But its precepts are at the foundation of all 
moral training in school, and of all right living in life. 
The excavations of buried cities in the East are proving 
that its history is in the main reliable. Its pages con- 
tain the loftiest poetry, the purest code of morals, the 
deepest philosophy of any book in existence. Without 
the strength and influence which come from the Bible 
our civilization could not endure for one generation. 
My advice to teachers is not alone to read the Bible, 
but to study it, that they may be ready to explain ref- 
erence made to it in any branch; and above all to 
emphasize its teaching in the everyday life of the 
school. Its maxims, its precepts, its poetry may be 



Books a?id Their Uses J2p 

taught and infringe upon no man's liberty of con- 
science. They must be taught if our children are to 
live in a Christian civilization. (See page 127.) 

After all, books are to be read with a purpose. The 
intelligent reader gets from them the same assistance 
that the pioneer gets from the 

Grubbing-Hoe and the Axe. 
Quotations Worth Reading 

BOOKS, THEIR USE AND ABUSE. 

In science, where the highest intellectual qualities are brought 
into play, most of the great discoverers have owed their entire 
scientific knowledge to self-taught methods of investigation. 

—Harold E. Gorst. 

You may also confer an important benefit on the neighborhood 
in which you are employed by promoting the formation of a 
library of scientific and useful books. The attention of the 
young is not sufficiently given to reading of the most useful kind. 

—R. S. Hall. 

Read a little of some good author every day. Not that you 
may always make his thoughts your own, but rather that his 
thoughts may stimulate yours and that the purity of his language 
may be a model for your imitation. A little reading will oft make 
an intellectual giant, while the gluttonous, all-devouring reader 
remains a dwarf. It is true concerning readers that "Pigmies 
are pigmies still though perched on Alps, and pyramids are pyra- 
mids in vales." 

— Talks to Youttg People. 

Our own English literature is probably, taking all things into 
consideration, the richest of all literatures, and for us it is without 
question far the most valuable. I would, therefore, recommend 
to each one of you to make it a point to become somewhat fully 
acouainted with this noble literature. 

— George B. Emerson. 

How careful then should we be to make learning as agreeable 
as possible, to beware of exciting disgust toward study, and to 
nurture a literary taste, not only as good in itself but as an 
important preservative from evil especially to boys in future life! 

—Hints on Early Education. 

THE LIBRARY. 

The library has no right to set itself up as a censor of public 
morals, forbidding men to read anything. But since it has 



jjo Common Sense Didactics 

important functions to discharge toward the public it is bound to 
choose those books best suited to its purpose, and must under- 
stand that purpose clearly and adapt the means to the end. 

— W. R. Eastman. 

I cannot believe that the librarian is merely to register the 
wishes of the boys who want Buffalo Bill or Peck's Bad Boy or 
the books of this class with which the press is swarming. The 
duty of the librarian is to elevate the standard of taste in a town. 
His function is an educational function. He represents among 
books what the director of music does in great opera houses, 
He is to elevate as rapidly as possible the standard of taste of the 
town. 

— R. H. Jones. 
THE LIBRARY HALF HOUR. 

The teachers can suggest to pupils valuable books suitable for 
their age, attainments, tastes, and necessities. Many a boy has 
been ruined by the dime novel, who might have been saved by 
reading books of real adventure and true heroism, suggested to 
him by some thoughtful, faithful teacher. Seldom does a day 
pass when the vigilant teacher has not an opportunity either in 
class or in private conversation to drop into the prepared soil of 
some pupil's mind a hint of some valuable book to read. 

— Thomas J. Morgan. 

There are some people, old and young, who will never read; 
there are many who can easily be made to read too much. It is 
possible to read too many books, even good books. The Sunday 
School library, and even the public library, sometimes bring to 
the young people too many books to their mental development. 
We need to emphasize the use of books rather than the reading of 
books. 

—A.E. Winship. 

One point I urge; I know it to be essential. We'don't take 
pains enough to show our pupils the beauty of English style. I 
tried it with a grammar school. During a recess I picked up a 
volume of De Quincey and read it quietly to myself. The pupils 
were still in five minutes and came about my desk to listen. If 
you show children the beauty of perfect English speech you have 
done more than anything else to free them from the baneful style 
of these objectionable authors. Children appreciate the things 
that are lovely and of good report if you put them before them. 

— C. C. Rounds. 
FICTION. 

One must not be altogether dissatisfied if it is found that the 
novel is the chief book in demand, especially in the first five years 
of the home reading circle. In our day the novel discusses every 
question of history, politics, sociology and natural science. The 
old-fashioned novel which describes manners has its great use, 



Books and The if Uses jji 

too, in the fact that it gives to the people of whom we are 
speaking, the people of the rural districts, a ready knowledge of 
manners and customs of polite society. In this respect it is some- 
times more useful than books of science and history. 

— William T. Harris. 

The story itself of Sir Launfal's quest of the Holy Grail is one 
easily appealing to the childish mind, and its life lesson, 
"The Holy Supper is kept, indeed, 
In whatso we share with another's need; 
Not what we give, but what we share. 
For the gift without the giver is bare," 

can be taken into life forever. 

— The World Beautiful in Books. 

He who can think, and loves to think, will become, if he has 
a few good books, a wise man. He who knows not how to think, 
or who hates the toil of doing it will remain imbecile though his 
mind be crowded with the contents of a library. 

— The School and the Schoolmaster. 

THE BIBLE. 

I contend that we are not only on the point of impoverishing 
life and literature by the neglect of the English Bible, but that we 
have already impoverished life and literature. I am not dealing 
with a problem that lies in the future, I am speaking of a condi- 
tion which is at hand. We are impoverishing life and literature 
by striking out of our life and our reading one great monument of 
our literature, the source from which much of what is best in later 
centuries is drawn, -the inspiration upon which the best English 
style has been built. 

—Nicholas Murray Butler. 

It is apparent that familiarity with the English Bible, as a 
masterpiece of literature, is rapidly decreasing among the pupils 
in our schools. This is the direct result of a conception which 
regards the Bible as a theological book merely, and thereby leads 
to its exclusion from the schools of some states as a subject of 
reading and study. We hope for such a change of public senti- 
ment in this regard as will permit and encourage the reading and 
study of the English Bible as a literary work of the highest and 
purest type side by side with the poetry and prose which it has 
inspired and in large part formed. 

We do not urge this in the interest of sectarian instruction of 
any kind, but that this great book may ever be the teacher's aid 
in the interpretation of history and literature, law and life — an 
unrivaled agency in the development of true citizenship as well as 
in the formation of pure literary style. 

— Resolution of National Educational Association, IQ02. 



Jj2 Commo?t Sense Didactic s 

Questions for Examination 

1. Rewrite the extract from William EUery Channing. 

2. What does Emerson say of books? 

J. How would you meet the evil of dime novels in your school? 

4. Write of the influence of books upon the child's mind. 

5. How may you possibly lead a pupil to form the reading 

habit? 

6. What can you do if you have no library at your disposal? 

7. What suggestions are given for the selections of library 

books? 

8. How should a book be read in order to be of the greatest 

use to the reader? 

9. Mention a small list of the best English authors. 

10. How may a library period be conducted to the best advan- 
tage? 

Suggestions Worth Thinking About 

/. Who was Hawthorne? 

2. Who is my one favorite author? 

J. Can I afford to begin the formation of a private library? 

4. Am I making myself acquainted with good literature? 

J-, "Current Events" — what attention should be called to them? 



INDEX 

OF TITLES AND SUBDIVISIONS TREATED OF IN EACH 
CHAPTER 

CHAPTER I. 
The Nature and Character of Teaching — T//^ Open Door 



Use of Discipline. 

Instruction and Education, 

Life, the Educator. 

The Child's Future. 

Importance of Study. 

Study Defined. 

Rosenkranz's Idea. 

Immaturity Not a Crime. 

Training. 

Habits. 

Skill, How Best Acquired. 



CHAPTER 11. 
Fhe Teacher — r>^^ Master Builder 

Integrity and Honesty. 
Some Things in Confidence. 
Scholarship : Cramming. 



PA( 


5E 


PAG! 


9- 


Teaching. 


16. 


lO. 


Distinction of Terms. 


17- 


lO. 


Teaching vs. Learning. 


17- 


II. 


Freedom. 


18. 


II. 


Mechanical Teaching. 


18. 


12. 


Baldwin's Definition. 


19. 


IS- 


Importance of Ideals. 


19. 


IS- 


Quotation from Dr. James. 


20. 


14. 


Growth of the Teacher. 


20. 


IS- 


Huxley's Idea. 


20. 


IS- 


Knowledge and Discipline. 


21. 


16. 


Knowledge Not Power. 





Personal Appearance. 31- 

Uniformity and Sincerity. 32. 

Horace Mann. 33- 

The Gift of Silence. 33- 

Criticising Other Teachers. 34- 

Worry. 34- 
Maintain a Good Opinion of 

Yourself. 3S- 
Personality. 



Reading of Good Books. 
Growth. 

How the Teacher Should Pre- 
pare the Lesson. 
Sympathy and Patience. 



CHAPTER III. 
Preparation for "^^KQ^mG — Putting on the Armor 



Thought. 

Teaching Has Lasting Results. 

Knowledge. 

Application of Knowledge. 

Practical Value of Knowledge. 

Danger of Ignorance. 

Character and Reputation. 

Character vs. Reputation. 

Sympathy with Pupils. 



Independence the Purpose of 

Education. 
Make Allowances. 
Adaptability. 
Ideal Standard Cannot Always 

be Attained. 
Health. 
Pernicious Habits. 



333 



334- 



Common Se?isc Didactics 



CHAPTER IV. 
Things Essential to the Teacher — Driving the Stakes 



PAGE vt 

57. Plan and System, td. 

58. Child Nature. 67, 

59. The Teacher of To-day. 67 

60. The Art of Imparting Knowl- 68, 

edge. 68, 

Steps in Imparting. 70 

Versed in Child Nature. 70 

Loyalty. 71, 
Relations to the Public, 

Ways of Avoiding Friction. 72. 
The Study of Environment. 



Self-Knowledge and Self-Trust. 

Intuition. 

Knowledge of the World. 

The Avenues of Success. 

Duties and Rights. 

Wise Discrimination. 

General Knowledge. 

The Teacher to be Versed Kt 

Sources of Knowledge. 
Daily Preparation, 



CHAPTER V. 
The Child — A Little Child Shall Lead Them 



77. Dealing with the Material. 

78. The Worth of the Child. 

79. Studying the Children. 

81. "What of the Children." 

82. Physical Needs of the Child. 

83. Knowing the Child. 

84. Study of the Inner Life. 

85. Experience and Observation. 



90. 



92. 



Senses of the Teacher. 
Psychological Terms. 
Sensations, Perceptions,Concep- 

tions. 
Apperception. 
Induction ; Deduction. 
The Two in Conjunction. 
The World in Its Infancy. 



CHAPTER VL 

Knowledge Most Useful to the Children — The Making of a 

Man 

Arithmetic. 

For Primary Teachers. 

Geography. 

Dr. Harris's Suggestions. 

The Desire to Know. 

Eye and Hand. 

Manual Training. 

For Rural Teachers. 

Quotation from Francis W. 

Parker. 
Laws of Health. 
Miscellaneous. 



97- 


Relative Value of Studies. 


108 


98. 


Reading. 


no 


100. 


Reading for the Pupil. 




lOI. 


The Spiritual Side. 




102. 


The English Language. 




102. 


Suggestions. 




103. 


Grammar. 




104. 


Spelling. 




105. 


Penmanship. 




105. 


History. 




107. 


Elementary Civics. 


118 


108. 


Possibilities of Life. 


119 



CHAPTER VH. 
Morals — Otit of the Abicndance of the Heart 



124. The Cultivation of Morality. 

125. The Province of the School in 

Moral Training. 



126, 
127, 
128. 



Special Virtues. 
Religion in the Schools. 
What May be Taught, 



Index of Titles and Siibdi 



visions 



335 



Morals ■ 

PAGE 

130. Extract from Cyrus Peirce. 



130. 

133- 
134- 
134- 
135- 



Motives. 

Motives Classified. 
The Will. 

A Strong but Depraved Will. 
Conscience. 

Strengthen Both Conscience 
and Will. 



Continued 
PAGE 

136. Children who Lack in Con- 
science. 

136. ConditionsFavorabletoGrowth 

of Conscience. 

137. Character Building Not the 

Design of Education. 

138. Force of Example. 

139. Conclusion. 



147. 
148. 



153- 
154- 



CHAPTER VIIL 
Habits — A Helpmg Hajid 



145. Habits and Character. 



Power of UnconsciousThought. 
Moral and Intellectual Growth. 
Personal Habits. 
The Habit of Seeing Things. 
Nature Study and Ethical 
Training. 



156. Patriotism. 

156. The Habit of Temperance. 

158. World's Work Done by Sober 

Men. 

159. The Spirit of Instruction. 

159. The Tobacco Habit. 

160. Summary. 



CHAPTER IX. 
School Government — In the Kijigs Naitie 



165. 


Government, 


173- 


166. 


Authority. 




167. 


Teacher and Parent. 


174. 


168. 


The Aims of Authority. 


175- 


169. 


Characteristics of Authority. 


176. 


170. 


Justice. 


176. 


170. 


Praise and Censure. 


177. 


171. 


Reason, the Foundation. 


178. 


172. 


Necessity of Law and Author- 


179. 




ity. 


180. 



Confidence Not Inconsistent 

with Authority. 
Prevention. 
Arrangement. 
Management. 
Influence. 
Suggestion. 

Points Worth Considering. 
Rewards and Punishments. 
Wrong Methods. 



CHAPTER X. 

The Hygiene of the School — To Keep 

ing Old 



World from Grow- 



185. 


The Foundation of Human 


194. 




Happiness. 


195- 


186. 


The Teacher's Part 


197. 


187. 


Ventilation. 


197. 


188. 


Methods of Ventilation. 


198. 


190. 


An Illustration. 


200. 


191. 


Regulation of Heating. 


201. 


191. 


Care of the Eyes. 


201. 


192. 


The Blackboards. 


202. 


193. 


Print in the Text-book. 





Physical Culture. 

Gymnastics : Athletics. 

Water Supply. 

Contagious Diseases. 

Janitors. 

General Considerations. 

Care of Outside Wraps. 

Worry. 

Home Study. 



336 



Common Sense Didactics 



CHAPTER XL 

The Cultivation of Taste — Beautiful Gates are for Beautiful 

Things 



PAGE 


PAGE 


208. Aims of the Country School. 


214. Decorations. 


210. The Ideal Location. 


215. From Report of Committee of 


211. The Rallying Place. 


Twelve. 


211. The Taste for the Beautiful. 


216. Drawing, 


213. Improvement of Grounds. 


217. Singing. 


213. In City Schools. 


218. Conclusion. 



224. 

225. 

226. 
227. 

228. 

229. 
229. 

231. 



CHAPTER XH. 
The Recitation — The Life of the School 



The Recitation. 

The Lesson. 

Reassignment of Lesson. 

The Class. 

Individual and Class Instruc- 
tion. 

Not Limited to Ungraded 
Schools. 

The Teacher. 

Teach the Art of Study. 



231. 


Teacher a Good Listener. 


233- 


Preparation. 


234- 


Unity. 


235- 


Thoroughness. 


236. 


Spirit of Inquiry. 


237- 


The Mechanics of the Recita- 




tion. 


238. 


The Art of Questioning. 


240. 


The Written Recitation. 



CHAPTER XLLL 
Oral Instruction — By Mans Voice the Heart is Stirred 



245. 


The Subject Stated. 


250. 


The Province of Oral Instruc- 


246. 


Growth of Oral Instruction. 




tion. 


247. 


Nature of Oral Instruction. 


251- 


Freedom Essential. 


247. 


Interest Only One of the Fac- 


253- 


Importance of Diversifying 




tors. 




Methods. 


248. 


Purposes of Oral Instruction. 


254- 


Making Simple Apparatus. 


249. 


Language of Teachers. 


25s. 


The Pupils Must Make an Effort 


249. 


Avoid Technical Terms. 


256. 


Can You Teach? 



CHAPTER XLV. 
Memory — Mans Best Servant 



259. Right Use of Memory. 


266. 


260. What is Memory ? 


266. 


261. Steps in Memorizing. 


268. 


262. Cultivation of Memory. 




264. Method of Cultivation. 


268. 


^65. Attention, Order, Repetition. 


269. 



Recollection. 

Kinds of Recollection. 

Advantage of Memory and 

Recollection. 
Memory Involves Study. 
Miscellaneous. 



Index of Titles and Subdivisions jjy 



CHAPTER XV. 

Imagination, Attention, Interest — ''The Times are Left 
Forever in the Strm^s 



274. Imagination. 

275. Reproductive Iinagination. 

276. Constructive Imagination. 

277. Ics Value to the Child. 

277. Direction and Cultivation. 

278. A Pure Imagination, 

279. The Child's Fantasies. 
279. The Vision Faculty. 



PAGE 

280. Attention, 

281. How to Hold the Attention. 

282. Kinds of Attention. 

283. Cultivation of Attention. 

284. Indifference a Hindrance. 

284, Interest. 

285. Memory and Attention, 



CHAPTER XVI. 
The Old vs. The New — Let There be Light 

The Ideal Way. 

Points to be Aimed at. 

Methods. 

Use of Text-books. 

The Real Difference Between 

Old and New. 
Changed Environments. 



289 


There is no Superlative, 


298. 


291 


Foundations. 


299. 


292 


Three Reformers : Rousseau. 


300. 


293 


Rousseau's Ideal Child. 


302. 


293 


Pestalozzi and His Ideal. 


303- 


294 


Froebel and His Ideal. 




295 


The Old and the New Educa- 
tion Compared, 


304- 



CHAPTER XVII. 
Books and Their Uses — The Grubbing-Hoe and the Axe 

Children's Books. 

What the School Library 

Should Contain. 
Books for the Country School 

Library. 
The Library of Use to all Young 

People. 
The Teacher's Reading. 
Reading Fiction by the 

Teacher. 
The Teacher Should Own 

Books, 
Reading the Bible. 



309- 


The Teacher's Tools, 


320 


310. 


Books ; Their Uses' and Abuse. 


321 


3"- 


The Age of Investigation. 




312. 


The Library. 


322. 


313- 


Rightmindedness to be Aimed 






at. 


324 


314- 


The Library in the Home. 




315- 


The Influence of Books. 


325- 


316. 


Choice of Books. 


327 


316. 


The Library Half Hour. 




317- 


Fiction. 


327 


318, 


The Dime Novel. 




319- 


Selecting Books for the Library, 


32S. 



S2 



INDEX OF AUTHORS QUOTED 



ARNOLD, SARAH L., 222, 257, 306. 
ARNOLD, THOMAS, 9. 

BACON, FRANCIS, 257. 
BALDWIN, JOSEPH, 21, 23, 94, 271. 
BALLARD, ADDISON, 39. 
BALLIETT, THOMAS M., 25, 224. 
BARNES, EARL, 120. 
BARNETT, P. A., 55, 74, 162, 182. 
BEECHER, HENRY WARD, 274. 
BERGEN, J. Y., 204. 
BLAIKIE, WILLIAM, 121. 
BOSTON PUBLIC LIBRARY, 

Motto, 163. 
BRIGHT, ORVILLE T., 75. 
BROOKS, EDWARD, 21, 22. 
BROOKS, PHILLIPS, 208. 
BROWN, Dr. JOHN, 37. 
BURKE, EDMUND, 143. 
BUTLER, NICHOLAS MURRAY, 

331- 

CALDERWOOD, HENRY, 143, 165, 

257, 272. 
CALKINS, N. A., 77. 
CHANNING, WILLIAM ELLERY, 

309- 
CHURCHILL, F. F., 222. 
CICERO, 141. 

CLARKE, EDWARD H., 37, 185. 
CLOUGH, ARTHUR HUGH, 289. 
COLTON, BUEL P., 162, 163. 
COMENIUS, 94. 
COMPAYRE, GABRIEL, 22. 
COOPER, SARAH B., 124, 306. 

DARLING, HENRY, 37. 

De GARMO, CHARLES, 306. 

DEXTER AND GARLICK, 74, 142, 

221, 271, 272, 274. 
DRAPER, ANDREW S., 162. 
DUTTON, SAMUEL T., 124, 222, 274, 

289. 



FISKE, LEWIS RANSOM, 23, 205. 
FITCH, J. G., 37, 183, 240, 242, 257. 
FLEISCHER, RABBI CHARLES, 

162. 
FORBUSH, WILLIAM BYRON,i6i. 
FOWLER, WILLIAM K., 222. 
FROEBEL, FREDERICK, 307. 

GILL, JOHN, 141, 161. 
GORDY, J. P., 259, 272, 287. 
GORST, HAROLD E., 329. 
GREGORY, JOHN M., 162. 

HALE, EDWARD EVERETT, 55. 
HALLECK, REUBEN POST, 23. 
HALL, G. STANLEY, 206. 
HALL, R. S.,329. 
HAM, CHARLES H., 121. 
HARRIS, WILLIAM T., 121, 161, 165, 

224, 242, 271, 286, 287, 309, 331. 
HARRISON, ELIZABETH, 93. 
HELVETIUS, 271. 
HILLIS, NEWELL DWIGHT, 120, 

121, 243, 308. 
HINSDALE, BURK A., 94, 95, 120, 

241, 242, 259, 287, 308. 
HODGE, CLIFTON F., 206. 
HOLMES, OLIVER WENDELL, 

165. 
HOOD, THOMAS, 39. 
HOPKINS, MARK, 143, 271, 286. 
HOWLAND, GEORGE, 36, 57, 74, 

224, 257, 272, 273. 
KUXLEY, 185. 

JACKMAN, WILBUR S., 257. 
JAMES, WILLIAM, 39, 57, 286, 287. 
JOHONNOT, JAMES, 54, 271- 
JONES, RICHARD H., 330. 

KARR, GRANT, 23. 

KEATS, JOHN, 220. 

KERN, O. J., 221. 

KOTELMANN, LUDWIG, 203, 204, 



EASTMAN, W. R., 330. 
ELIZABETH, CHARLOTTE, 
EMERSON, GEORGE B., 329. 



33S 



LANDON, JOSEPH, 54, 73, 142, 181, 

203. 
LOWELL, JAMES RUSSELL, 220. 



Index of Authors Quoted jjp 



MACLAREN, IAN, 124. 

MANN, HORACE, 36, 97, 163, 185, 

205, 219, 245, 309. 
MAYHEW, IRA, 203, 205. 
McMURRY, CHARLES A. and 

FRANK M., 94, 308. 
MITCHELL, DONALD GRANT, 

75- 
MORE, HANNAH, 97, 182. 
MORGAN, THOMAS J., 93, 307, 330. 

OGDEN, JOHN, 182. 

PAGE, DAVID P., 21, 37, 93, 143, 163, 

182, 183, 241. 
PALMER, FRANCIS B., 95, 182, 259, 
PARKER, FRANCIS W., 36, 77, 

120, 121. 
PATRICK, J. N., 224, 241. 
PAYNE, W. H., 25, 37, 54, 120, 242, 

257. 
PESTALOZZI, JOHN HENRY, 75, 

77i 307- 
PIPER, JONATHAN, 145. 
PLATO, 185. 
PORTER, NOAH, 286. 
PRICE (a pupil of Arnold's), 55. 
PROCTER, ADELAIDE ANNE, 

145. 
PROVERBS, 57, 163. 

QUICK, R. H., 54, 93, 122, 183, 242, 287. 

REID, THOMAS, 161. . 

RICHMOND, ENNIS, 182. 

ROARK, RURIC N., 22, 94, 95, 120, 
205, 240, 242, 243, 286. 

ROGERS, NATHANIEL PEA- 
BODY, 221. 



ROOPER, T. G., 95. 
ROSENKRANZ, KARL, 23, 245. 
ROUNDS, CHARLES C, 330. 
ROUSSEAU, 289, 306. 

SCHAEFFER, NATHAN C, 25, 122, 

241, 289, 306. 
SEARCH, PRESTON W., 256, 257. 
SEERLEY, HOMER H., 57, 121. 
SHEPARD, HIRAM H., 162. 
SMITH, A. T., 161, 271, 286. 
SOCRATES, 9. 
STETSON, W. W,, 204. 

STEVENSON, ROBERT LOUIS, 

144. 

SULLY, JAMES, 23, 73, 143, 
SWETT, JOHN, 93, 120, 205, 206, 222, 

272. 

SWING, DAVID, 54. 

TABOR, FRANCIS H., 205. 
TAYLOR, A. R., 77, 94, 95, 143, 205. 

259, 271. 
THOREAU, HENRY D., 57. 
THRING, EDWARD, 37, 39, 57, 161 

165, 241, 274. 

VINCENT, JOHN A., 9. 

WARNER, A. B., 75. 
WARNER. FRANCIS, 120, 204. 
WHITE, EMERSON E., 23, 55, 74, 77 

94, 141, 242, 243, 272. 
V/HITTIER, J. G., 219. 
WICKERSHAM, J. P., 143, 184, 24-. 
WILSON, JAMES, 220, 221. 
WINSHIP, ALBERT E., 330. 
WORDSWORTH, WILLIAM, 55. 



INDEX OF SUBJECTS 



ACTION, every, has a moral side, 135. 

Adaptability to Circumstances, 49. 

Air, keep in open, 30. 

American Citizen, typical, 129 ; vital 
qualifications of, 129. 

Apparatus, making simple, 254. 

Apperception Defined, 89. 

Architect, must know, 57. 

Arithmetic, 108 ; J. P. Wickersham 
on teaching, 108 ; other points, 108 ; 
rules for primary teachers, no. 

Arrangement, 175. 

Attention, art of paying, 280; illus- 
trations, 281 ; how to hold ; Hart's 
"In the School Room," on, 281; 
two kinds of, 282 ; Baldwin, on, 
282 ; how to cultivate, 283 ; indiflfer- 
ence a hindrance to, 284. 

BEING, problem of complete physi- 
cal, 53. 

Bible, reading of, 328. 

Blackboards, general directions con- 
cerning, 192. 

Books, use and abuse of, 310; with- 
out, God is silent, 311; influence 
of, 311; choice of, 316; fiction in, 
317 ; dime novel, 318 ; for children, 
320 ; for rural school libraries, 322, 
324 ; teacher should own, 327. 

Boy, the bai efoot, 84 ; the truant, 133. 

Brooks, Phillips, Bishop, 1320 

CHARACTER Commended, 44; 

building of, 44 ; growth of, 44 ; part 
of man's individuality, 45 ; not 
reputation, 45 ; a growth, not a 
creation, 137. 

Child, the future of the, 18 ; heart of, 
responds, 36 ; nervous, 59 ; worth 
of, 78; physical condition, 82; 
knowing the, 83 ; loves the beauti- 
ful, 211. 

Children, duties and rights of, 68; 
studying the, 79 ; are living senti- 
ent, flesh and blood, 80 ; what of 
the, 81 ; should be trained to quiet 
ways, 82 ; diifer in perceptive 



Children — Continued. 

faculties, 87; how they differ, 140; 
don't worry them. 201 ; must be 
treated as children, 298. 

Childhood, study of, 85. 

Child Nature, teacher should be 
versed in, 62. 

Civics, elementary, 107. 

Civility, 152. 

Class, the, 227. 

Committee of Twelve, extracts from 
report, 215, 228. 

Concept Defined, 89. 

Conscience, connected with char- 
acter, 134; absence or death of, 
134; how nurtured, 135 ; a tender, 
135 ; and will, 135 ; child who lacks, 
136; conditions favorable to 
growth, 136. 

Contract, binding, 31 ; investigate 
before signing, 50. 

Cramming, 255,270. 

DAILY Preparation, 72. 
Decorations, 214. 
Deduction Defined, 90. 
Development, slow process, 20; 

mental, not to be arrested, 88. 
Discipline, use of, 16; through close 

application, 42 ; under two heads, 

75- 
Discrimination, wise, 70. 
Diseases, contagious, 197 ; beginning 

of, 198. 
Disobedience, not to be tolerated, 

151- 
Drawing, 216. 
Duties, may be exacted, 69. 

EDUCATION, province of, 17; 

moves along parallel lines, 18 ; 

purpose of, 47 ; end kept in view, 

58; habits included under, 160; 

new compared with old, 295, 303 ; 

differs from old, 296 ; modifications 

of old, 297. 
English Language, 102 ; suggestions 

how to teach, 102. 
Enjoyment, keenest, 85. 



340 



Index of Subjects 



34-1 



Environments, study of, 66 ; 

changed, 304. 
Example, force of, 138. 
Exercise, 52 ; in open air, 196. 
Experience, 85. 
Eyes, care of, 191, 194. 

FARMER, modern, 58. 

Fiction, teachers should read, 327. 

Flag, to be saluted, 156. 

Foundations, 291. 

Freedom, 11. 

Friction, how to avoid, 65. 

GEOGRAPHY, no ; for older pupils, 
III ; Harris on teaching, m, 

God, existence of may be taught, 127. 

Government, 165 ; endsof,i67 ; funda- 
mental principles of, 173; defined, 
176; points to be considered, 178; 
wrong methods, 180. 

Grammar, 103. 

Greatness, measure of, 290. 

Growth, 34; moral and intellectual, 
148. 

HABITS, 20, 82, 145; pernicious, 52 j 
change of, 146 ; defined, 146 ; result 
of unconscious thought, 147 ; per- 
sonal, 148 ; of seeing things, 153 ; 
tobacco, 159. 

Health, 51, 82, 186 ; laws of, 118 ; foun- 
dation of human happiness, 185 ; 
too little attention paid to in 
school, 186. 

History, 105 ; clothing skeleton in 
words, 105 ; three points in teach- 
ing, 106. 

Home Study, 202. 

IDEALS, importance of, 13. 

Idleness, 168. 

Ignorance, danger of, 43. 

Imagination Defined, 274; two kinds 
of, 275 ; reproductive, 275 ; differs 
from memory, how, 275 ; con- 
structive, 276 ; value of to child, 
277 ; direction, cultivation, 277 ; 
pure, 278 ; helps the child to think, 
278 ; fantasies of child's, 279 ; vision 
faculty, 279 ; quotation from Hil- 
lis on, 279 ; quotation from "School 
and Schoolmaster " on, 280. 



Immaturity Not a Crime, 20, 

Individuality, two sides, 146. 

Induction Defined, 90 ; employed in 
some recitations with deduction, 
91. 

Instruction and Education, 17 ; prov- 
ince of, 17 ; habits included under, 
160; individual and class, 228; 
growth of oral, 246. 

Integrity, 31. 

Interest, 284. 

Intuitions, 67. 

JANITORS, choice of, 198 ; duties of, 

199. 
Justice, 170; based upon reason, 171 ; 

children have keen sense of, 172. 

KNOWLEDGE, 41; not discipline, 
15; not power, 16; application of, 
41 ; practical value of, 43; art of 
imparting, 60; steps in imparting, 
61 ; general, 70 ; sources of, 71 ; 
desire for, 113; of right and 
wrong, 119. 

LESSONS, prepared beforehand, 34 ; 
method of preparation, 34 ; assign- 
ment of, 225; when reassigned, 226. 

Library, school, 312 ; in the home, 
314; half hour in, 316; selecting 
books for, 319 ; should contain 
what, 321; of general use, 324. 

Life in a Republic, possibilities of, 
108. 

Life, the educator, 17. 

Loyalty, 63. 

MANAGEMENT, characteristics of, 
176. 

Material, dealing with, 77. 

Memorizing, steps in, 261. 

Memory, right use, 259 ; defined, 260; 
special training, effect of, 261 ; 
cultivation of, 262, 264; must be 
adapted to wants of child, 263 ; 
verbal, 263 ; cultivation of, not to 
be left to chance, 264 ; points to be 
observed, 264, 265 ; to express 
thoughts of other, 265 ; voluntary, 
266; involuntary, 267; involves 
study, 268 ; and attention, 283. 



34-2 



Coinvtojt Sense Didactics 



Methods, 300. 

Morality, cultivation of, 124. 

Moral Instruction, 128; how far car- 
ried, 127. 

Moral Training, province of in 
school, 125. 

Motives, moral instruction, 130; 
lassified, 131, 132. 

NATION, this a Christian, 128. 

Nature of Child, 58. 

Nature Study, 154. 

Neatness, 149. 

Noise Not Music, 218. 

OBEDIENCE, 151. 

Observation, 86. 

Oral Instruction, growth of, 246; 
essentials of, 246 ; nature of, 247 ; 
interest, factor in, 247 ; prepara- 
tion for, 249 ; technical terms to 
be avoided, 249; province of, 250; 
three-fold province of, 251 ; free- 
dom is essential, 251; when 
adapted for use, 252; not to be 
separated from text-book en- 
tirely, 253. 

Order, 149. 

Outbuildings, janitor should care 
for, 199. 

PATIENCE, see iywi/aM;/. 

Patriotism, 155. 

Penmanship, 105. 

Percept Defined, 89. 

Perception Defined, 89. 

Personality, 31. 

Physical Culture, 194. 

Plan and System, 57. 

Praise, undue, works evil, 171 ; how 
bestowed, 181. 

Prevention, 174. 

Principles, society based upon cer- 
tain, 126. 

Program, making the, 175. 

Public, relation of teacher to, 64. 

Punctuality, 149. 

Punishments, Ennis Richmond on, 
174. See also Rewards. 

Pupils, teacher should be interested 
in, 32 ; to gain knowledge, 43 ; 



V\x^\\^—^ Continued. 

heart contact with, 47 ; individual 
cups for, 197 ; trained to leave the 
room without asking, 200. 

QUESTIONING, art of, 238 ; three 
kinds of, 239 ; directions, 239. 

READING, at head of list, 98; how 
to teach, 99, 100; on intellectual 
side, 100 ; for pupils, 100. 

Recess, not to be abolished, 196. 

Recitation, three factors of, 224; the 
class in, 227 ; what it is, 227 ; pupils 
to question each other during, 
227 ; should do four things for the 
pupil, 228 ; teacher in, 229 ; meth- 
ods in, 230; things essential to, 
230 ; teacher a good listener, 231 ; 
purpose of, 233 ; preparation for, 
233 ; point of failure, 233 ; unity 
of, 234 ; object of, 236 ; mechanics 
of, 237 ; written, 240 ; memoriter 
not of necessity an evil, 267. 

Recollection Defined, 266; kinds of, 
266. 

Regularity, 149. 

Religion in Schools, 127. 

Reputation, should be guarded, 45. 
See also Character. 

Responsibility, basis of moral ac- 
tions, 125 ; doctrine of, 127. 

Results, how to obtain best, 78. 

Rewards, 179. 

Right Actions Spring from Right- 
mindedness, 138. 

Rules, not many, 169. 

Rumors, idle, not be noticed, 65. 

Ruts, falling into, 35. 

SCHOLARSHIP of Teacher, 33. 

School, aim of, 44; individuality of, 
49; duties are enervating, 52 
have changed, 59 ; country, aims 
of, 208; subjects taught in, 209; 
location of, 210; grounds about, 
210; rallying place, 211; grounds 
to be improved, 213, 214; city 
grounds, 213 ; grounds should be 
attractive, 214. 



Index of Subjects 



34^3 



Schoolmaster, English, story of, 69. 

Schoolroom, ventilation of, 187, 190; 
heating of, 191 ; lighting of, 191 ; 
improper seats, 194, 195 ; decora- 
tion of, 214, 215. 

School-teaching Like Other Voca- 
tions, 80. 

Self-knowledge, 66. 

Sensations Defined, 88. 

Sense, common, value of, 50. 

Senses, five windows of the soul, 85 ; 
exercises to train, 86; develop- 
ment, order of, 87. 

Sermon on the Mount, 126. 

Sewing, hand, 115. 

Sincerity, prime element in charac- 
ter, 26. 

Singing, 217. 

Skill, how acquired, 21. 

Spelling, 104; oral not to be dis- 
carded, 104. 

Spirit of Inquiry, 236. 

Standard, ideal not always attain- 
able, 50. 

Studies, relative value of, 97. 

Study, importance of, 18 ; defined, 
19 ; how to, 19 ; intelligent, 229 ; 
art of, to be taught, 231. 

Success, avenues of, 68. 

Suggestion, doctrine of, 177. 

Superintendent, county, teachers 
should be loyal to, 64. 

Sympathy, 35 ; with piipils, 46. 

System, see Plaii. 



Teacher— Continued. 

knowledge of the world, 67 ; should 
be wise adviser, 68 ; not expected 
to know everything, 71 ; ideal, 81 ; 
senses of, to be trained, 86 ; sug- 
gestions for rural, 115 ; responsible 
for health, 186; in recitation, 229; 
a leader, 230 ; language of, 249 ; 
reading of, 325 ; should read fic- 
tion, 327; should own books, 327. 

Teaching vs. Learning, 10; mechan- 
ical, II ; nature of, 13 ; culmination 
of, 13 , results lasting, 40 ; free- 
dom in, 303. 

Temperance, habits of, 156; instruc- 
tion, spirit of, 159. 

Terms, distinction of, 10; psycho- 
logical, 88. 

Text-books, how to use, 72, 302 ; fine 
print not to be studied, 193 ; not to 
be discarded, 303. 

Thoroughness, 235. 

Thought, 39 ; power of unconscious, 
147. 

Tobacco Habit, 159. 

Training, necessary, 19 ; defined, 20; 
eye and hand, 114; manual, 114; 
habits, included under, 160. 

VENTILATION, necessity of, 187; 
methods of, 188 ; problem intensi- 
fied, 189; illustration, 190; W. W. 
Stetson on, 190. 

Virtues, special, 126. 



TEACHER, growth of, 14; personal 
appearance of, 25, 26 ; same at all 
times, 26 ; should exercise discre- 
tion, 27 ; should refrain from some 
things, 27 ; should have gift of 
silence, 27 ; should not talk, 29 ; 
self-respect of, 30 ; bound by con- 
tract, 31 ; should pay debts, 32 ; 
must be a scholar, 33 ; reader of 
good books, 33 ; not to undervalue 
knowledge, 40; to make allow- 
ances, 48 ; of to-day, 59 ; who de- 
sires to be respected, 60; should 
manifest an interest in having 
child understand, 61 ; cannot cre- 
ate intellect, 63 ; should have 



WELL, schoolhouse, to be cared 

for, 196. 
What May be Taught, 128. 
Will, in moral instruction, 133; 

strong but depraved, 134. 
W^isconsin Normal Teachers' Instu 

tute, extract from, 237. 
Work, distinguished from play, 19; 

best done by best thinkers, 39 ; 

not to be done at home, 52 ; most 

important, 79. 
World in its Infancy, 92, 
World's Work Done by Sober Men, 

158. 
Worry, 29, 201. 
Wraps, care of, 201. 



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every one concerned in the training of children. It represents a thor- 
oughly helpful line of manual work which will be a basis for a more 
wholesome manual training for older girls as well as for the primary 
children who were first concerned in it. 

THE TEACHING OF ARITHMETIC AND 
ELEMENTARY ALGEBRA 

By Clinton S. Osborn, late Instructor in the Ethical Culture Schools, 
New York Citv- With an introduction by John Dewey, Director of 
the School of'Education in the University of Chicago. With tables, 
charts, and diagrams. Cloth, pages, ismo. 

Through the methods given in this book the child can be given ideas 
of number according to principles that are psychologically correct, the 
means used being counting, grouping, analysis-synthesis, measuring, 
and the ideas of series and symmetry. 



NEW SUPPLEMENTARY READERS 



The Sunbonnet Babies'Primer, 
by Eulalie Osgood Grover,$ 

Eskimo Stories, by Mary E. 
E. Smith 

Stories of Mother Goose Vil- 
lage, by Madge A. Bigham 

A Child's Garden of Verses, 
by Robert Louis Stevenson 

Classic Myths, by Mary 
Catherine Judd 

Four Old Greeks, by Jennie 
Hall 

Viking Tales, by Jennie Hall 

Child Stories from the Mas- 
ters, by Maud Menefee 



■ 30 



Norse Stories, by Hamilton 

Wright Mabie $ .40 

KingArthurandHis Knights, 

by Maude L. Radford 50 

"Wings and Stings, by Agnes 

McClelland Daulton .40 

Achilles and Hector, by 

Agnes Cook Gale 00 

The Tree-Dwellers, by Kath- 
arine E. Dopp 00 

Folk-Tales from the Russian, 
by Verra X. K. de Blumen- 
thal 00 

Japanese Fairy Tales, by 

Teresa Pierce Williston... .00 



RAND. McNALLY 6 COMPANY, PUBLISHERS 
Chicago New York London 



JUL 13 1905 



